Results from the Healthy Active Kids South Africa 2018 Report Card

Abstract

Physical activity (PA) is beneficial for the physical and mental health of children and adolescents (0-17 years old), [1,2] while higher levels of sedentary behaviour (particularly screen time) are associated with unfavourable health outcomes. [3,4] Nutrition has been recognised as a factor contributing to the development of overweight/obesity in children and adolescents. [5] A nutrient-dense diet and regular PA are beneficial for overall child growth, health and wellbeing. [6] Healthy lifestyle behaviours also play a role in cognitive development and school achievement in children and adolescents. [7] The Healthy Active Kids South Africa (HAKSA) Report Card reviews the most current evidence on the PA, nutrition and body composition of South African (SA) children and adolescents. This evidence provides the basis from which to guide policy, develop interventions and programmes and strengthen advocacy to create healthy environments and support healthy nutrition and PA, and discourage sedentary behaviours in SA children and adolescents. Children and adolescents (0-19 years old) make up 39% of the total population of SA (~52 million people in total). [8] Although this proportion of children and adolescents is relatively high, it is lower than those in some other African countries: the proportion of children and adolescents 0-14 years old (a narrower age range) is also 39% in Zimbabwe (population ~13.8 million), and in Nigeria the proportion of 0-14 year olds is 43% (population ~190.6 million). [9] Results from the HAKSA 2016 Report Card indicated that more than 50% of SA children were meeting PA recommendations, and government policies for the support of sport and PA in children and adolescents were evident. Areas of concern were high amounts of screen time and sedentary behaviour, as well as low fruit and vegetable consumption, and high intake of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) and fast foods. Undernutrition and overweight/obesity were highlighted as a concern, as overweight prevalence was increasing, [10] and the HAKSA 2016 Report Card highlighted the persistence of the double burden of under-and over-nutrition across South Africa. [11] The HAKSA 2018 Report Card is the fifth in the series (since 2007), [10-12] and aims to report on the available evidence relating to PA, sedentary behaviours, nutrition and body composition of SA children and adolescents (3-18 years old) published since the 2016 Report Card. In addition, we consider the related environmental and ecological factors that may be barriers to or facilitators for healthy eating and PA in SA children and adolescents. Methods The HAKSA 2018 Report Card has been developed and produced by a scientific advisory group consisting of 29 academics and/or content experts, with group leaders for physical activity, nutrition, body composition and early childhood content (in the context of this article, 'early childhood' refers to preschool-aged children, or those aged between 3 and 5 years old). Comprehensive searches on PubMed, Africa Journals Online, Africa-Wide I...

The South African 24-Hour Movement Guidelines for Birth to 5 Years: An Integration of Physical Activity, Sitting Behavior, Screen Time, and Sleep

“…These ECD stakeholders and government representatives were seen as a vital part of the process, and would be able to provide insight into the acceptability and feasibility of disseminating these guidelines, given that movement behaviours are not currently a priority issue in early childhood in SA. Other academic researchers with expertise in movement behaviours in the early years or with expertise in early childhood development were identified from the Scientific Advisory Group of the Healthy Active Kids South Africa Report Card 13 and invited to be part of the consensus panel. All those invited were given an outline of the guideline development process and informed of the consensus panel meeting that was to take place in April 2018.…”

“…Overall, there was a paucity of literature describing the physical activity, sedentary behaviour and sleep of 0-5 year old children in SA. 8 This was highlighted in the Healthy Active Kids South Africa 2018 Report Card 13 There were a number of recent studies on movement behaviours in this age group, and while these studies were done with relatively small, localised samples, they represent the best available evidence. However, the generalisability of these findings to all SA children is limited.…”

Association between Objectively Determined Physical Activity Levels and Body Composition in 6–8-Year-Old Children from a Black South African Population: BC–IT Study

“…Although the benefits of PA have been well identified, physical inactivity remains a major public health problem [ 13 , 14 ]. The Healthy Active Kids South Africa (HAKSA) 2018 report indicated that 50% of children are not meeting the recommended average of 60 min of MVPA per day [ 15 ]. It appears that the adoption of urban lifestyles, introduction of technology-related devices and the shift from active transport, particularly in children from rural areas, are all responsible for decreasing levels of PA [ 2 , 16 ].…”

Parent perspectives on preschoolers’ movement and dietary behaviours: a qualitative study in Soweto, South Africa

“…A recent study examining preschoolers' movement behaviours and gross motor skills in Soweto highlighted that many young children were short sleepers and seemed to be going to bed late (7) . Concerns around South African children's diets include the lack of dietary diversity in young children's diets, as many are consuming a diet that is high in starchy foods and low in fruits and vegetables, and the consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages, salt and fast food (21,22) . It is important to understand the contexts in which these behaviours occur, as it is recognised that factors like socio-economic circumstances and elements of the built environment have a bearing on childhood obesity and related behaviours (23,24) .…”