Parenting and the decline of physical activity from age 9 to 15

Abstract

BackgroundThere is a rapid decline in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) during middle childhood and adolescence. Information on the environmental factors implicated in this decline is limited. This study focuses on family factors associated with the rate of decline in objectively measured physical activity during middle childhood and adolescence.MethodsLongitudinal analysis of 801 participants from 10 US sites in the NICHD Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development whose data included accelerometer-determined levels of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) between ages 9 and 15 years, as well as family process, BMI and demographic information. The sample included an even split of boys (49%) and girls (51%), was predominantly white (77%), and contained about 26% low income and 19% single parent families. The outcome measure was mean MVPA. It was based on 4 to 7 days of monitored physical activity.ResultsBoys with lower parental monitoring scores and more days of parental encouragement had significantly more minutes of MVPA at age 9 years. The effect of parental monitoring, however, was moderated by early puberty. High parental monitoring was associated with decreased activity levels for boys experiencing later puberty and increased activity for boy experiencing early puberty. Minutes of MVPA for boys living in the Midwest decreased at significantly faster rates than boys living in any other region; and boys in the South declined faster than boys in the West. Girls in the Midwest and South declined faster than girls in the West and Northeast. Among girls, more days of parental exercise and transportation to activities were associated with more MVPA per day at age 9. However, more parental transportation to activities and less monitoring was associated with faster linear declines in daughters' MVPA between the ages of 9 and 15 years. For girls who experienced puberty early, parental encouragement was associated with more MVPA.ConclusionsParenting processes, such as monitoring and encouragement, as well as the parents' own level of physical activity, showed significant, but small, gender-specific associations with MVPA levels at age nine and the linear rate of decline in MVPA between ages 9 and 15.

The Modifying Effects of Race/Ethnicity and Socioeconomic Status on the Change in Physical Activity From Elementary to Middle School

“…14 A SES composite commonly used is maternal education and family income reduced to an income-to-needs index based on federal poverty level for family size. Studies that used this composite measure may be more sensitive, and some have yielded statistically significant differences between SES and PA. 4,29 …”

“…Several studies have examined various levels of correlates 31,32 and predictors 29,33–35 of PA in similar-aged groups, and some included diverse samples but did not stratify by race/ethnicity. A large number of studies examined PA trends by race/ethnicity but did not include variables associated with the behavior.…”

Pilot Study of an Active Screen Time Game Correlates with Improved Physical Fitness in Minority Elementary School Youth

“…[34][35][36] Sedentary and active behaviors clearly have an impact on health and fitness, but other factors may have a far greater impact on the distribution of leisure time activity than the interaction between sedentary and active behaviors. [37][38][39] One fundamental difference for DDR lies in that it is a PA that requires the use of a television. Yet, there is no guarantee that a child will not displace outdoor play with DDR, thereby sparing some portion of SST.…”

Influência do número de dias e de horas válidas de uso do acelerômetro na estimativa do nível de atividade física em pré-escolares de Recife, Pernambuco, Brasil

“…Periods of non-monitoring time were considered when 30 consecutive minutes elapsed without any count record being observed. These periods of typical nonwearing time were excluded from the analysis, as suggested by Bradley et al 13 and Heitzler et al 14 . The results were presented as the mean daily time spent in moderate and vigorous physical activities adjusted for the wearing time.…”