Physical activity is important for children’s health and development, but many do not get enough exercise.
- Andrew Atkins
Public health guidelines state that children should accumulate at least an hour per day of moderate to vigorous intensity physical activity, which might include brisk walking or running, active participation in sports or exercising. At the same time, children should minimise the amount of time they spend sitting for extended periods.
To examine the seasonal variation in children’s behaviour, researchers at the Medical Research Council (MRC) Epidemiology Unit and Centre for Diet and Activity Research (CEDAR) at the University of Cambridge used data from the UK Millennium Cohort Study, which measured levels of physical activity in more than 700 seven year old children across a calendar year using accelerometers. Using the data, they also modelled the relationship between levels of activity and variables such as gender, weight and family income. The results of their study are published in the journal Medicine & Science in Exercise & Sport.
The researchers found that physical activity was lower in autumn and winter compared to spring; average activity levels across the group peaked in April at 65.3 min/day and reached their lowest levels in February at 47.8 min/day. Physical activity was at its lowest at weekends during winter. Children were at their most active during early summer, particularly at weekends.
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Image: chasing shadows... (cropped)
Credit: David Robert Bliwas
Reproduced courtesy of the University of Cambridge
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