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  • Pediatric Original Article
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Relationship of physical activity with motor skills, aerobic fitness and body fat in preschool children: a cross-sectional and longitudinal study (Ballabeina)

International Journal of Obesity volume 35, pages 937–944 (2011)Cite this article

Subjects

Abstract

Background:

Adiposity, low aerobic fitness and low levels of activity are all associated with clustered cardiovascular disease risk in children and their high prevalence represents a major public health concern.

Objective:

The aim of this study is to investigate the relationship of objectively measured physical activity (PA) with motor skills (agility and balance), aerobic fitness and %body fat in young children.

Design:

This study is a cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses using mixed linear models. Longitudinal data were adjusted for baseline outcome parameters.

Subjects:

In all, 217 healthy preschool children (age 4–6 years, 48% boys) participated in this study.

Measurements:

PA (accelerometers), agility (obstacle course), dynamic balance (balance beam), aerobic fitness (20-m shuttle run) and %body fat (bioelectric impedance) at baseline and 9 months later.

Results:

PA was positively associated with both motor skills and aerobic fitness at baseline as well as with their longitudinal changes. Specifically, only vigorous, but not total or moderate PA, was related to changes in aerobic fitness. Higher PA was associated with less %body fat at baseline, but not with its change. Conversely, baseline motor skills, aerobic fitness or %body fat were not related to changes in PA.

Conclusion:

In young children, baseline PA was associated with improvements in motor skills and in aerobic fitness, an important determinant of cardiovascular risk.

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Acknowledgements

We thank all children, their parents, school teachers and the respective school health services for their participation and help in the study. The study was principally supported by Swiss National Science Foundation (Grant 3200B0-116837) and Health Promotion Switzerland (Project 2104). Additional funding was obtained from a research award for Interdisciplinary Research from the University of Lausanne, a Takeda research award, the Wyeth Foundation for the Health of children and adolescents, the Freie Akademische Gesellschaft and an unrestricted educational grant from Nestlé. Trial Registration: clinicaltrials.gov NCT00674544.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Exercise and Health Science, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland

    F Bürgi & U Meyer

  2. Institute of Sport Science, Friederich-Schiller-University Jena, Jena, Germany

    U Granacher

  3. Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland

    C Schindler & S Kriemler

  4. Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Vaudois and University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland

    P Marques-Vidal

  5. Service of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Vaudois and University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland

    J J Puder

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  1. F Bürgi
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Correspondence to F Bürgi.

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Bürgi, F., Meyer, U., Granacher, U. et al. Relationship of physical activity with motor skills, aerobic fitness and body fat in preschool children: a cross-sectional and longitudinal study (Ballabeina). Int J Obes 35, 937–944 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1038/ijo.2011.54

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