scholarly journals Laterality in Children: Evidence for Task-Dependent Lateralization of Motor Functions

Author(s):  
Danilo Bondi ◽  
Giulia Prete ◽  
Gianluca Malatesta ◽  
Claudio Robazza

The behavioral preference for the use of one side of the body starts from pre-natal life and prompt humans to develop motor asymmetries. The type of motor task completed influences those functional asymmetries. However, there is no real consensus on the occurrence of handedness during developmental ages. Therefore, we aimed to determine which motor asymmetries emerged differently during childhood. A total sample of 381 children in grades 1 to 5 (6–11 years old) of primary school were recruited and tested for two fine coordination tasks (Floppy, led by dexterity, and Thumb, led by speed-dominated skills) and handgrip strength (HS). Data about their handedness, footedness and sports participation were also collected. Children performed better with their dominant side, especially for the Floppy and HS tests. The asymmetries were more marked in right-handed children and did not differ by age, gender or type of sport. Our findings support the thesis of a functional lateralization in complex coordinative tasks and in maximal strength during developmental ages. Furthermore, our findings extend the evidence of a stronger lateralization in right-handed individuals, demonstrating it at a functional level in primary school children performing motor tasks. Fine motor skills allow a “fine” understanding of developmental trajectories of lateralized behavior.

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (Supplement_5) ◽  
Author(s):  
A Masini ◽  
S Marini ◽  
D Gori ◽  
M Montalti ◽  
M Lanari ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Physical inactivity is worldwide considered one of the biggest public health problems of the 21st century. WHO recommended in children, at least 60 minute of Moderate Vigorous Physical activity (MVPA) per day, but low percentages comply with guidelines. Considering that children spend many hours at school, classroom is the ideal setting to increase their PA. Active Breaks (AB) are a 5-15-minute bouts of PA led by the teachers during academic lessons. The aim of the Imola AB study is to implement a 1-year intervention based on AB (10min/3per-day) in primary school as a new strategy to reduce inactivity. We present the baseline results. Methods Quasi-experimental pre-post study in 6-10aged primary school children, in Imola(Italy).We evaluated PA level with Actigraph accelerometers: time (in minutes) spent in MVPA Weekly and Daily (W-MVPA; D-MVPA) and Weekly Sedentary behaviours (W-SB). Results We recruited 152 children: N = 110 in Active Breaks experimental group (AB) and N = 42 in control group (CG). Actigraph's analysis showed that 42,5% of children in the ABG vs 31.0% in the CG reach the WHO recommendation (p=ns). We investigated baseline differences between groups using ANOVA dividing children by grade. In 3-4 grades: W-MVPA (AB = 318.3±15.5 vs CG = 310.4±98.0 p = 0.78); D-MVPA (AB = 53.0±20.3 vs CG = 51.8±16.3 p = 0.79);W-SB (AB = 6,687.5±375.3 vs CG = 6,754.7±281.0 p = 0.45). In 1grade: W-MVPA (AB = 376.1±127.9 vs CG = 300.3±120.0 p = 0.02); D-MVPA (AB = 62.7±21.3 vs CG = 50.0±20.0 p = 0.02); W-SB (AB = 6,436.0±496.0 vs CG = 6,373.3 ±1,532.0 p = 0.7). Conclusions Only the 39.2% of the total sample met the 60-minute/day of MVPA recommended. We found no significant baseline differences in PA level measured by Actigraph between CG and AB, excepted in 1 grade. The intervention implemented in the Imola AB study could be a good strategy to reduce sedentary in children and reach the WHO recommendation, thus contributing to the aims of the new Global Action Plan on PA 2018-2030. Key messages Less than 50% reach the WHO recommendations of PA. AB implemented in the Imola Study could be a public health school-based strategy to reduce sedentary and increase healthy behavior in children. Active breaks (AB) are emerging as a good strategy to increase the PA level, reducing the time in sedentary habits.


2020 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 547-581
Author(s):  
Marina Llosa Villa ◽  
Francisco Javier Pérez Rivera ◽  
Elena Andina Díaz

Introducción: Las intervenciones educativas en el entorno escolar, parecen la forma más efectiva de actuar contra la obesidad infantil. Los objetivos de esta revisión sistemática fueron, describir las intervenciones educativas sobre alimentación y/o actividad física llevadas a cabo en alumnos de Educación Primaria con el fin de disminuir o prevenir la obesidad infantil y analizar la eficacia de dichas intervenciones.Metodología: Se realizó una búsqueda bibliográfica en las bases de datos WOS y SCOPUS. Los criterios de elegibilidad fueron establecidos en base al acrónimo PICOS: (P) niños de educación primaria (6-12 años), (I) estudios que llevaran a cabo intervenciones de nutrición y/o actividad física en el ámbito escolar, (C) no recibir ninguna intervención, (O) evaluar el efecto de los programas educacionales sobre la obesidad infantil, (S) estudios experimentales, publicados entre 2013 y 2017.Resultados y discusión: Se identificaron 571 artículos, y finalmente se incluyeron 22 estudios. Se encontró que las intervenciones más prometedoras fueron las combinadas. La duración, la participación de los padres, el sexo y nivel socioeconómico pueden influir en la efectividad de las intervenciones. Se observó una escasez de intervenciones teóricamente fundamentadas.Conclusiones: Las intervenciones con mejores resultados son las combinadas, con actividades incluidas en el currículo y la participación de los padres. Las intervenciones a largo plazo parecen tener mejores resultados. Estos programas ayudan a la adquisición de hábitos saludables y existe cierta evidencia de que son útiles en la disminución del Índice de Masa Corporal (IMC) o en la prevención de la obesidad infantil. Introduction: Educational interventions in the school environment seem the most effective way to act against childhood obesity. The objectives of this systematic review were to describe the educational interventions on nutrition and / or physical activity carried out in primary school students in order to reduce or prevent childhood obesity and analyze the effectiveness of these interventions.Methodology: A bibliographic search was carried out in the WOS and SCOPUS databases. Eligibility criteria were established based on the acronym PICOS: (P) primary school children (6-12 years), (I) studies that will carry out nutrition and / or physical activity interventions in the school setting, (C) not receive any intervention, (O) evaluate the effect of educational programs on childhood obesity, (S) experimental studies, published between 2013 and 2017.Results and discussion: 571 articles were identified, and finally 22 studies were included. It was found that the most promising interventions were the combined ones. Duration, parental involvement, gender and socioeconomic status can influence the effectiveness of interventions. A shortage of theoretically based interventions was observed.Conclusions: The interventions with the best results are the combined ones, with activities included in the curriculum and the participation of the parents. Long-term interventions seem to have better results. These programs help the acquisition of healthy habits and there is some evidence that they are useful in decreasing the Body Mass Index (BMI) or in the prevention of childhood obesity.  


2014 ◽  
Vol 53 (2) ◽  
pp. 188-198 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marjeta Kovač ◽  
Gregor Jurak ◽  
Lijana Zaletel Kragelj ◽  
Bojan Leskošek

Abstract Background: The prevalence of overweight and obesity among children has increased dramatically in recent decades. The survey examined overweight and obesity in the population of boys and girls from Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia, aged seven through fourteen from 1991 to 2011. Methods: An annually repeated cross-sectional study of data from the national SLOFIT monitoring system was used. The body mass index cut-off points of the International Obesity Task Force were used to identify the prevalence of overweight and obesity. Multinomial logistic regression was used for modelling the probability of overweight and obesity as a function of time (year of measurement), sex and age of subjects. Results: In 1991-2011 period, the odds for overweight and obesity among primary school children (n = 376,719) increased every year by 1.7% (95% CI: 1.6-1.9) and 3.7% (3.4-4%) respectively. Boys have 1.17 (95% CI: 1.15-1.20) times higher odds of becoming overweight and 1.39 (95% CI: 1.35-1.44) times higher odds of becoming obese than girls. In comparison to the reference group (age of 14), the highest odds for overweight were found at the ages of nine and ten (1.39; 95% CI: 1.34-1.44), while for the obesity the highest odds were at the age of eight (2.01; 95% CI: 1.86-2.16). Conclusion: From 1991 to 2011, overweight and obesity clearly became more prevalent in children from Ljubljana. This trend has been more obvious among boys than girls. In comparison to 14-year-old boys and girls, the highest odds for excessive weight were found below the age of 10.


2018 ◽  
Vol 46 (21_suppl) ◽  
pp. 68-73 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristen Ringdal ◽  
Gerd Inger Ringdal ◽  
Helene Kristin Olsen ◽  
Asgeir Mamen ◽  
Per Morten Fredriksen

Aims: The primary aim of the present study was to evaluate the association between parents’ level of education, measurements of physical attributes, and quality of life in a general sample of primary school children. Methods: The children’s and the parents’ versions of the Inventory of Life Quality in Children and Adolescents (ILC) were used to measure health-related quality of life (QOL) in 2140 school children (response rate 93%) and 1639 parents (response rate 71%) recruited from nine primary schools in Norway. A set of physical characteristics were also measured in the children: body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, average daily minutes of physical activity, aerobic fitness, and handgrip strength. Results: The regression analysis showed stronger relationships between the covariates and QOL for the parents’ assessments than for the children’s. Parents’ level of education was significantly related to children’s QOL, with the strongest association for parental QOL assessment. Among the physical variables, aerobic fitness ( B = 0.01, p > .001 in both samples), and handgrip strength in the parents’ sample ( B = 0.21, p < .05) were significantly related to the children’s QOL. Conclusions: The present study replicated the well-known finding that parents’ sociodemographic status is important for children’s QOL. Our new contribution is to show that the physiological variables aerobic fitness and muscular strength also contributed significantly to explain variance in QOL. This opens up interesting perspectives on how to improve QOL among children through more emphasis on physical activity and physical fitness in schools.


Author(s):  
Vincenzo Sorgente ◽  
Erez James Cohen ◽  
Riccardo Bravi ◽  
Diego Minciacchi

Gross and fine motor competence have a close relationship during development and are shown to correlate to some extent. However, the study of the interaction between these domains still requires further insights. In this study, we investigated the developmental changes in overall motor skills as well as the effects of gross motor training programs on fine motor skills in children (aged 6–11, n = 240). Fine motor skills were assessed before and after gross motor intervention using the Box and Block Test. The gross motor intervention was based on the Test of Gross Motor Development—3rd Edition. Results showed that gross and fine motor skills correlate across all years of primary school, both significantly improving with age. Finally, the gross motor intervention appeared to not influence fine motor skills. Our findings show that during primary school age, overall motor development is continuous, but non-linear. From age nine onward, there seems to be a major step-up in overall motor competence, of which teachers/educators should be aware of in order to design motor educational programs accordingly. While gross and fine motor domains might be functionally integrated to enhance children’s motor performances, further research is needed to clarify the effect of gross motor practice on fine motor performances.


2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 59-65
Author(s):  
Elena A. Chanchaeva ◽  
Roman I. Aizman ◽  
Sergey S. Sidorov ◽  
Elena V. Popova ◽  
Olga I. Simonova

The beginning of children’s school education is a potential risk of morphofunctional and psycho-physiological disorders in the body because of the significant reduction in daily physical activity, the change in day regimen, emotional and intellectual stress, which are often inadequate for the age-related psycho-physiological capabilities of schoolchildren. In this paper, we analyzed the literature on the development of modern children of primary school age according to the results of the assessment of morphological, functional and mental indicators. The identification of a general trend in the development of primary school-aged children is necessary for determination and development of health-saving programs to implement in the system of modern education. A review of data on the development of younger school children over the past 20 years shows an increase in the number of children with digressions in physical development, deterioration in physical fitness, delay of biological age from actual age, stress of the cardiovascular system, decrease in lung capacity and muscle strength. This pattern is manifested regardless of the region of residence and the nationality of children. There is an increase in the number of children with learning difficulties. Among the reasons for these changes, researchers highlight the complexity of the educational program, physical inactivity, the delay of physical development and, at the same time, medical and social successes of the state, allowing preserving the life of newborns even with somatic and neurological abnormalities. In connection with the identified trend of development of modern primary school children, the measures are needed to optimize children’s learning activities by the following criteria: level of physical activity, intensity of intellectual loads, rest mode.


Motor Control ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 349-364 ◽  
Author(s):  
Danilo Bondi ◽  
Sergio Di Sano ◽  
Vittore Verratti ◽  
Giampiero Neri ◽  
Tiziana Aureli ◽  
...  

The gross motor coordination tasks are thought to be likely not linked to the fine motor coordination tasks. The authors aimed to investigate this matter through a network analysis linking graphomotor (by tablet PC tracing), gross coordination (by Körperkoordinationstest für Kinder items), and strength (by handgrip) parameters in school children. Interestingly, the authors found that “Hopping” was the strongest central node, with linkages to “Quality” and “Speed” on tracing test. Handgrip strength did not link to gross coordination and graphomotor parameters, except with “Pressure.” Graphomotor performances suggested substantial peculiarities in developmental trajectories. Sport participation did not influence gross coordination nor graphomotor performances. The authors suggest considering the functional link between hopping and graphomotricity both in planning physical education and in understanding coordination impairments, through the developmental trajectories.


2016 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 47-60
Author(s):  
Małgorzata Kołpa ◽  
Aneta Grochowska ◽  
Wojciech Brończyk

Introduction: The problem of obesity concerns not only adults but also children and teenagers. It is one of the most frequent developmental disorders among children. Around 20% of children have excessive body mass, and one-third of this group are obese children. The aim of the study was the assessment of the occurrence of obesity among 5th-6th graders of primary school and check children’s knowledge about proper nutrition principles. Material and methods: The method of diagnostic survey was used a questionnaire addressed to children. The questions concerned the child’s diet and checked the knowledge about healthy diet. In the course of the research anthropometric measurements were taken, the Body Mass Index (BMI), as well as Cole index were calculated. The survey was conducted from 1 September to 30 October 2014, among 400 children attending the 5th and 6th grade, in 8 primary schools in Tarnów. Results: As a result of the analysis it was found out that boys in comparison with girls statistically significantly more frequently ate vegetables once a week (p<0.001). Children’s diet influences their physical development, including body mass. The biggest observed body mass was 93 cm, and the smallest was 23.7 kg. The maximum difference between the body mass of individual children was 69.3 kg. The biggest value of BMI was 39.21, whereas the lowest BMI was 13.06. Conclusions: The level of knowledge about healthy lifestyle among the surveyed children is not sufficient to keep the proper body mass. The respondents most often snack sweets, cakes, crisps and sweet fizzy drinks between meals. The mentioned product should be replaced by vegetables, fruit and natural juices.


2008 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 58-62
Author(s):  
K.G. SOH ◽  
K. L. K. L. SOH ◽  
Marjohan Marjohan JAMALIS ◽  
Mohd Sofian O. F. ◽  
LIM P.Y. LIM

LANGUAGE NOTE | Document text in English; abstract also in Chinese. The rising standard of living in Malaysia has seen changes to its population. Obesity and other diseases of wealth are appearing in younger and younger people, resulting in the need for sports or exercise to stay fit and healthy. Studies have shown an inverse relationship between body fat percentage and aerobic capacity in children (Coleman et al., 2004). However, from the general studies, little is known specifically about Chinese primary school children. Therefore, this research aims to study the body fat and aerobic capacity of Chinese primary school children in Kajang, as possible representative of the national population. It will also ascertain whether there is any gender bias in the relationship. Two hundred and forty students were studied, from Years 4 and 5, equally divided between the sexes. The body fat percentage was determined using the skinfold method on the triceps and calf. After the fat measurement, the subjects were asked to perform the PACER bleep test to assess their aerobic capacity. The boys were found to be significantly superior in aerobic capacity (t = 1.35, p < 0.18) despite having higher body fiat. There was a low negative correlation between body fat and aerobic capacity (r = -0.28, n = 240, p < 0.01) among the children which was highly significant because of the large number of samples. In conclusion, 27.50% of the subjects were founds to have moderately high to very high percentage of body fat confirming the need to exercise to stay fit and healthy among this age group, especially among the boys. 馬來西亞的人口變化提高了人們的生活水準。肥胖和其他富貴疾病都出現于少年和年輕人,導致人們必須多做運動來保持健壯-Coleman et. al., (2004)的研究證明了兒童的體脂肪率和有氧容量之間的相反關係。然而,從一般上的研究,在華小兒童兩者之間的關係明確少知。所以,此探索的目的是研究在加影區某間華小兒童的體脂肪和有氧容量,盡可能作為國家人口的代表性。借此也探知兩者之間的關係是否有任何性別偏見。研究中共有240位由4、5年級平分的男女學生參與。研究運用測量三肌肉及腓皮膚表層的方法來固定體脂肪率。測量脂肪後,受試者需履行往返距離20米的PACER測驗來估算他們的有氧容量。儘管那些男生擁有較高的體脂肪,他們卻有卓越顯著的有氧容量(t=1.35, p<0.18)。因為受試者的人數眾多,有效的反映出兒童之間的體脂肪與有氧容量有低陰性關係(r=-0.28, n=240, p<0.01)。總結來説,14.17%的受試者擁有高或很高的體脂肪率,確認了這年齡的兒童特別是男生必需做運動來保持健壯。


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