Factors Influencing Break-Time Physical Activity of South African Primary School Learners From Low-Income Communities

2015 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 618-627 ◽  
Author(s):  
Monika Uys ◽  
Catherine Elizabeth Draper ◽  
Sharief Hendricks ◽  
Anniza de Villiers ◽  
Jean Fourie ◽  
...  

Background:The purpose of this study was to assess factors that influence physical activity (PA) levels during break-times in South African primary school children.Methods:The System for Observing Play and Leisure Activities in Youth (SOPLAY) was used to observe PA levels during break-times at low-income schools (4 intervention, 4 control). The intervention was based on action-planning including: school environment, curriculum, and family involvement. Categories of observed activity included Sedentary, Eating, Walking, or Vigorous PA. Contextual factors assessed included teacher supervision, equipment, and crowding. Chi-square tests were used to determine associations between PA levels and contextual factors.Results:In the 970 observations made, 31% of learners were sedentary, 14% were eating, 29% were walking, and 26% were engaged in vigorous PA. There were no differences in break-time PA between intervention and control groups (NS). With supervision, children were more likely to eat and less likely to do vigorous PA (P = .035). Playground crowding was associated with lower levels of vigorous activity and more sedentary behavior (P = .000).Conclusions:PA during break-time was adversely affected by over-crowding and lower with supervision. The results suggest that interventions may be targeted at the school policy environment to reduce these barriers to PA.

2005 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 54-60
Author(s):  
M. A. MONYEKI ◽  
L. L. J. KOPPES ◽  
H. C. G. KEMPER ◽  
K. D. MONYEKI ◽  
A. L. TORIOLA ◽  
...  

LANGUAGE NOTE | Document text in English; abstract also in Chinese.The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between physical activity and fitness in 212 South African rural primary school children. A questionnaire was used to gather physical activities performed during the whole week. The results show a few significant relationships between physical activity and sit-ups, shuttle run and 1600m run in girls, but none in boys. The gender difference may be explained by a ceiling effect in boys. The general absence of significant findings may be explained by the low nutritional status, unrecorded physical activity duration, high levels of physical activity, and heterogeneity in growth and maturation.本文旨在探討南非鄉鎮地區小學生身體活動量與體適能的關係,以問卷方式進行調查學童過去一星期的身體活動量,結果顯示女學童的身體活動量與仰臥起坐,來回跑及一千六百米跑有顯著相關,而男生的活動量與體適能卻沒有相關,這現象可能受其他因素影響所致。


2012 ◽  
Vol 15 ◽  
pp. S90-S91
Author(s):  
M. Uys ◽  
S. Hendricks ◽  
C. Draper ◽  
A. de Villiers ◽  
N. Steyn ◽  
...  

2013 ◽  
Vol 16 (6) ◽  
pp. 1043-1051 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ana Isabel Rito ◽  
Maria Ana Carvalho ◽  
Carlos Ramos ◽  
João Breda

AbstractObjectiveResults of the WHO European Childhood Obesity Surveillance Initiative indicated that on average one out of four primary-school children is overweight or obese. Portugal presented one of the highest prevalences of obesity. Childhood obesity prevention and treatment should be a top priority. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effectiveness of Program Obesity Zero (POZ), a multi-component, community-, family- and school-based childhood obesity intervention.DesignParents and children attended four individual nutrition and physical activity counselling sessions, a one-day healthy cooking workshop and two school extracurricular sessions of nutrition education. Waist circumference, BMI, physical activity level, sedentary behaviours, and nutrition and physical activity knowledge, attitudes and behaviour were assessed at baseline and after 6 months. Diet was assessed using two 24 h recalls, at baseline and at 6 months.SettingFive Portuguese municipalities and local communities.SubjectsTwo hundred and sixty-six overweight children (BMI ≥ 85th percentile) aged 6–10 years, from low-income families in five Portuguese municipalities, were assigned to the intervention.ResultsChildren showed reductions in waist circumference (−2·0 cm; P < 0·0001), mean BMI (−0·7 kg/m2; P < 0·0001) and BMI-for-age percentile (−1·7; P < 0·0001) at 6 months. Overall, children's intake of fruit and vegetables was <400 g/d throughout the intervention. After 6 months, higher fibre consumption and an apparent decrease in sugary soft drinks intake to a quarter of that observed at baseline (mean intake: 198 ml/d at baseline), with improvements in physical activity levels and screen time <2 h/d, were also observed.ConclusionsThe findings suggested that POZ is a promising intervention programme, at municipality level, to tackle childhood overweight and obesity.


2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (3) ◽  
pp. 150-156
Author(s):  
Simone A. Tomaz ◽  
Trina Hinkley ◽  
Rachel A. Jones ◽  
Rhian Twine ◽  
Kathleen Kahn ◽  
...  

Purpose: To assess physical activity (PA) and determine the proportion of preschoolers meeting PA recommendations in different income settings in South Africa. Methods: Preschoolers from urban high-income (UH), urban low-income (UL), and rural low-income (RL) settings wore an ActiGraph GT3X+ accelerometer for 7 days. PA variables of interest included volume moderate- to vigorous-intensity PA (MVPA) and total PA (light- to vigorous-intensity PA), hourly PA patterns, and percentage of children meeting guidelines (180 min/d of total PA, inclusive of 60 min/d of MVPA). Between-sex differences were assessed using t tests and Mann–Whitney U tests; between-setting differences assessed using 1-way analyses of variance and Kruskal–Wallis tests. Results: For all children (n = 229, aged 5.17 [0.69] y), average MVPA was 124.4 (37.5) minutes per day and total PA was 457.0 (61.1) minutes per day; 96.9% of children met guidelines. Boys did significantly more MVPA than girls (136.7 [39.37] vs 111.5 [30.70] min/d, P < .001), and UH preschoolers were significantly less active than UL and RL preschoolers (UH 409.1 [48.4] vs UL 471.1 [55.6] and RL 461.6 [61.4], P < .001). Conclusion: In both practice and research, it is necessary to explore ways to ensure that South African preschoolers from all income settings continue to engage in and benefit from healthy volumes of PA. This is especially important as preschoolers transition to a formal school environment.


2021 ◽  
Vol 10 ◽  
pp. 216495612110178
Author(s):  
Kidus Fitsum ◽  
Gudina Egata ◽  
Melake Demena ◽  
Berhe Gebremichael

Background Although overweight/obesity is becoming a public health issue in low income countries, there is a paucity of evidence concerning overweight/obesity in Ethiopia. The aim of the study was to assess the magnitude of overweight/obesity and associated factors among second cycle primary school children in Kirkos Sub-City, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Methods A school based cross-sectional study was conducted among 482 children from May to June, 2019. Data were collected using a questionnaire and checklist. Data were entered using EpiData version 3.1 and exported into SPSS version 22.0. Bivariable and multivariable logistic regression analyses were done to identify factors associated with overweight/obesity. Level of statistical significance was declared at p ≤ 0.05. Results The overall magnitude of overweight/obesity was 21.2%. The magnitude of overweight was 13.7% while obesity was 7.5%. Vehicle availability, being from private school, not having friend(s), preferring sweet foods, eating breakfast irregularly, watching movies/Television while eating and physical inactivity were the factors significantly associated with overweight/obesity among second cycle primary school children. Conclusions The magnitude of overweight/obesity was high in the study area. Therefore, health and education sectors should promote healthy lifestyle to curb child overweight/obesity.


Children ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 223
Author(s):  
Wajiha Anzar ◽  
Ambrina Qureshi ◽  
Ashar Afaq ◽  
Hiba F. Kattan ◽  
Basil Almutairi ◽  
...  

Aim: This study aimed to investigate an association between dental caries status and anthropometric measures in primary school children. Methods and Materials: An analytical cross-sectional study (n = 376) was conducted among primary school children (age range = 6–9 years) registered in private schools. Non-clinical data was gathered from parents of participating children through a self-administered structured questionnaire as well as from the children through an interviewer-administered questionnaire. Clinical data included the examination of dental caries using dmft/DMFT index and anthropometric measures including calculated z-scores of height-for-age (HAZ), weight-for-age (WAZ), BMI-for-age (BAZ), and physical examination. Inferential statistics included Kruskal Wallis and linear regression for univariate and multivariate analysis respectively. Results: The proportion of dental caries in primary and secondary dentition was 67.6% and 8.2% respectively. A significant association was observed between dental caries status and HAZ, WAZ, and BAZ (p < 0.001). An inverse relation was found between low, medium, and high dental caries categories and anthropometric measures. Conclusions: In the primary dentition, dental caries were significantly and inversely related to weight-for-age, height-for-age, and BMI-for-age. Hence, it can be concluded that among the low-income population dental caries is associated with lower anthropometric outcomes in children and therefore caries management should be considered an approach impacting overall health and quality of life.


2017 ◽  
Vol 27 (5) ◽  
pp. 467-474 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jorge Cañete García-Prieto ◽  
Vicente Martinez-Vizcaino ◽  
Antonio García-Hermoso ◽  
Mairena Sánchez-López ◽  
Natalia Arias-Palencia ◽  
...  

The aim of this study was to examine the energy expenditure (EE) measured using indirect calorimetry (IC) during playground games and to assess the validity of heart rate (HR) and accelerometry counts as indirect indicators of EE in children´s physical activity games. 32 primary school children (9.9 ± 0.6 years old, 19.8 ± 4.9 kg · m-2 BMI and 37.6 ± 7.2 ml · kg-1 · min-1 VO2max). Indirect calorimetry (IC), accelerometry and HR data were simultaneously collected for each child during a 90 min session of 30 playground games. Thirty-eight sessions were recorded in 32 different children. Each game was recorded at least in three occasions in other three children. The intersubject coefficient of variation within a game was 27% for IC, 37% for accelerometry and 13% for HR. The overall mean EE in the games was 4.2 ± 1.4 kcals · min-1 per game, totaling to 375 ± 122 kcals/per 90 min/session. The correlation coefficient between indirect calorimetry and accelerometer counts was 0.48 (p = .026) for endurance games and 0.21 (p = .574) for strength games. The correlation coefficient between indirect calorimetry and HR was 0.71 (p = .032) for endurance games and 0.48 (p = .026) for strength games. Our data indicate that both accelerometer and HR monitors are useful devices for estimating EE during endurance games, but only HR monitors estimates are accurate for endurance games.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tracey-Lee Cloete ◽  
Harsha Kathard

BACKGROUND Effective screening is required to facilitate the early identification of central auditory processing disorder (CAPD) - a deficit within the central auditory nervous system, which can have a significant effect on a child’s listening, learning and communication. While several screening tools have been proposed, there is a lack of contextually appropriate tools that take the needs of a multilingual society, like South Africa (SA), into consideration. OBJECTIVE This study aims to develop a contextually appropriate CAPD screening protocol for children (aged 7 to 12 years) in SA. The specific study aims are: (1) to develop a contextually appropriate screening protocol for CAPD in primary school children in SA, and (2) to evaluate the feasibility of implementing the developed protocol in primary school children in SA. METHODS The study will follow a developmental, mixed methods research design, implemented in two phases. Phase 1 will be applied to address aim 1. The aim will be achieved by (i) conducting a systematic review (i.e. objective 1.1); (ii) applying the nominal group technique (NGT) on experts to identify criteria for an appropriate protocol (i.e. objective 1.2); and (iii) using a combination of expert consultations, questionnaires and rating scales (administered to experts) to devise an appropriate screening protocol (i.e. objective 1.3). Once the protocol is developed, it will be implemented by the recommended end-users. Thereafter, a feasibility study will be conducted in Phase 2 to evaluate the implementation of the protocol. This phase will include field testing the protocol and a focus group discussion with end-users. For Phase 1, the narrative synthesis approach will be used to analyse systematic review data. For the NGT the researcher will tally the participants’ ratings to identify the list of criteria for an appropriate protocol. Content analysis and descriptive statistics will be performed to analyse the expert ratings of the protocols. For Phase 2, descriptive statistics will be performed to summarise features of the study sample and measures used. Thematic analysis will be conducted to analyse the focus group data. RESULTS Ethical clearance was obtained from the university’s Human Research Ethics Committee (HREC reference number 636/2020) and the Western Cape Education Department granted the researchers permission to recruit educators and learners from primary schools in the area. The systematic review for objective 1.1. was completed and findings outlined the test properties, benefits, and limitations of existing CAPD screening tools. Face-to-face data collection was postponed due to the global COVID-19 pandemic. Participant recruitment for objective 1.2 is currently underway and the anticipated completion date for data collection is July 2022. CONCLUSIONS The present study will aim to advance CAPD screening practice by proposing a process to develop a contextually appropriate protocol. The researcher will apply this process in the South African context to develop a CAPD screening protocol for primary school children in SA. CLINICALTRIAL Not applicable.


2018 ◽  
Vol 46 (21_suppl) ◽  
pp. 38-47 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wei Hai Deng ◽  
Per Morten Fredriksen

Aims: The objective was to investigate moderate-to-vigorous physical activity levels (MVPA) of primary school children at baseline of the Health Oriented Pedagogical Project (HOPP), Norway. Methods: Data on 2123 children aged 6–12 years were included for analysis (75% participation rate). Average minutes per day in MVPA was objectively measured using accelerometry based on seven-day averages. The sample was analysed for age-, sex-, socioeconomic-, and season-related patterns. A linear regression investigated the moderating effect of these factors as well as body mass index and waist circumference. Results: Some 86.5% of the sample had at least 60 min/day MVPA, averaging 90.7 min/day. The main differences in daily averages were between age groups 6½–9 and 10–12 ( p < .05). Boys (95.8 min/day, 95% CI: 94.1–97.5) were more active than girls (85.6 min/day, 95% CI: 83.9–87.2) in all age groups ( p < .0001). MVPA was lower by 3.5 min ( p < .0001) per additional year of age in the linear regression (R2 = 0.176) and was reduced by 20 min less per day in MVPA in the winter months compared with the summer months ( p < .0001). Conclusions: Physical activity levels are already in decline from 6–7 years old and are likely to continue to decline into adolescence. Interventions must therefore focus on primary school children.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document