24h behaviours in early childhood

Background and purpose: JOYPAM is a nationwide study monitoring joy of motion, physical activity, and motor skills of young children in Finland. Methods: In 2023 the amount and quality of physical activity were measured through early childhood education and care (ECEC) settings among 1834 children aged 4 to 6. Physical activity and sedentary time were monitored using a wrist-worn accelerometer (Axivity AX3), and parents’ and guardians’ views on physical activity were collected with a survey questionnaire. Results: On average, children engaged in light-intensity physical activity for 3.0 hours per day and moderate to vigorous physical activity for 1.2 hours per day. Children had on average 9.4 hours sedentary time, 8.3 hours peaceful sleep and 1.8 hours additional time in bed daily. Boys and older children were physically more active compared to girls and younger children (p< 0.001). According to the Finnish recommendations for physical activity in early childhood, children should engage in light, moderate or vigorous physical activity for at least three hours each day, of which at least one hour should be moderate to vigorous activity. Seventy-six per cent of children met this recommendation. Boys met the recommendation more often than girls (83 % vs. 68 %), older children more often than younger children, and children in cities more commonly than those living in rural areas or small towns. During ECEC children got 2.5 hours of light, moderate or vigorous physical activity. Conclusions: ECEC is an important source of physical activity for a child. There might be potential for increasing physical activity in general at home environment during free time and on the weekend days, and moderate to vigorous physical activity for girls during ECEC. Funding: The study was funded by the Ministry of Education and Culture.

Background: The right combination of physical activity (PA), sedentary time, and sleep is essential for healthy growth and development. The Australian 24-Hour Movement Guidelines for the Early Years (“the Guidelines”) stipulate the minimum amount of time children should spend being physically active, maximum time in sedentary screen-based activities, and optimal sleep duration. Parents play a central role in the development of children’s movement behaviours; however, few studies have examined associations between parenting practices and adherence to the Guidelines. Purpose: 1) report the proportion of toddlers and preschoolers meeting the Guidelines for the early years; and 2) determine associations with parenting practices related to PA, screen time, and sleep. Methods: 239 parent-child dyads attending community playgroups across three Australian states (95.2% female, 54.1% > age 35 y, 58.2% university degree, mean child age: 3.0 ± 1.1 y) completed a survey assessing screen time, sleep, and associated parenting practices. PA was measured using a wrist-worn accelerometer (Axivity AX3). Logistic regression was used to determine which parenting practices were associated with meeting the Guidelines. Results: 57% of children met the PA recommendation, 31.5% met the screen time recommendation, 72.6% met the sleep recommendation, with 14.4% meeting all three recommendations in the Guidelines. Use of screen time to reward/control child behaviour, limiting or monitoring screen time, parental support for PA, and maintaining a consistent bedtime routine were parenting practices associated with children´s adherence to the Guidelines. Conclusion: A small proportion of Australian toddlers and preschoolers attending community playgroups meet the Guidelines. Parenting practices that both support and potentially undermine children’s autonomy were associated with children’s adherence to PA, screen time and sleep recommendations. Practical Implications: Interventions to establish healthy lifestyle behaviours in the early years should target autonomy-promoting parenting practices related to screen time, sleep, and PA. Funding: Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF) (APP1200764).

BACKGROUND: The importance of movement behaviours for health is well known, although few studies have examined the compliance with movement guidelines in preschoolers from different living contexts. PURPOSE: To reported the compliance with the 24-h movement behaviours guidelines among low-income Brazilian preschoolers from rural and urban areas, according to age. METHODS: A total of 453 preschoolers (n=222 urban), aged between 3-5 years, provided physical activity (PA) data (Actigraph wGT3X). Sleep duration, and screen time were parent-reported. Preschoolers were classified as compliant/non- compliant with the 24-hour movement guidelines, according to age. The association between prevalence of compliance with the recommendations and the children´s living setting were estimated (SPSS; 27.0). RESULTS: Preschoolers were active (299.19±76.42; and 369.76±95.56 min/day in urban and rural areas, respectively), though moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) time was below the recommended in both urban and rural settings (38.39 ± 21.36; and 47.32 ± 24.28, respectively). None of the urban children comply with the three recommendations simultaneously, while in the rural area, only 2.6% are compliant. The rural area was related to the compliance with PA recommendation for the 5 year-old preschoolers. CONCLUSION: In both urban and rural Brazilian areas, very few preschoolers are compliant with the guidelines, and in both settings, more than one third of the children do not comply with any of the recommendations. At 5 years-old, compliance with PA recommendations was related to rural children. PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS: Strategies and programs to promote compliance with movement behaviours guidelines should consider children´s living setting and their age groups. FUNDINGS: No funding

Background: Large differences in movement behaviour recommendations exist across childhood. Longitudinal trends in meeting age-specific movement behaviour guidelines are under-researched and limited by methods used to process device-based data. Purpose: Using a novel machine-learning approach to process device-based movement data, examine developmental trends and sex differences in movement behaviours in children 2-7 years over a three-year period. Methods: Data from the PLAYCE cohort study in W.Australia were analysed (n=1217). Physical activity and sedentary time were measured by accelerometry at ages 2-5 (preschool, wave 1) and 5-7 (full-time school, wave 2), and processed using a validated machine-learning classification model. Daily time spent in sedentary behaviour, energetic play, total physical activity, and meeting physical activity guidelines were analysed using linear and generalised linear mixed-effects models with age-by-sex interactions. Results: Behaviours changed significantly (p<0.05) with increasing age and trends were similar in boys and girls. Total physical activity increased from age 2 to 5 then declined to age 7. At all ages, mean total physical activity exceeded the 180 minutes/day guideline. Energetic play increased from age 2 to 7, however, was below 60 minutes/day at all ages except for 7-year-old boys. Sedentary time decreased to age 5 then increased to age 7. All 2-year-old children met the age-specific physical activity guideline, decreasing to 5% of girls and 6% of boys at age 4. At age 7, 46% of boys and 35% of girls met the physical activity guideline. Conclusions: Young children’s energetic play and total physical activity increased with age, but few children aged 3-7 met the energetic play guideline. Practical implications: Early childhood interventions should focus on increasing energetic play. Strategies are needed to support young children as they transition developmentally and from one movement behaviour guideline to the next. Funding: Healthway (#24219, #32925); UKRI-NHMRC Built Environment Prevention Research Scheme [APP1192764].

Background: Parents play a crucial role in shaping a child’s physical activity, sedentary behaviour and sleep (i.e. 24-hour movement behaviours). However, inconsistent research findings on the relationship between parenting and these behaviours underscore the need for a nuanced understanding. Leveraging the Self-Determination Theory (SDT) as an organizing framework holds promise in clarifying this complex relationship. Purpose: This study aims to investigate the relationship between parenting constructs conceptualized within the SDT and 24-hour movement behaviours in preschoolers. Methods: This cross sectional study focuses on children between 2,5 to 5 years old and one of their parents. Data collection spans December 2023 to March 2024. The 24-hour movement behaviours will be measured for seven consecutive days using ActiGraph wGT3X+ accelerometers and processed by GGIR package in R. A questionnaire, encompassing the Parent Social Context Questionnaire-Toddlers, gauges parenting dimensions within the SDT framework. This includes warmth, autonomy support, structure, rejection, coercion, and chaos. Supplementary questions derived from the Movie Models study assess structure, autonomy support, and positive involvement specifically for each of the behaviours. Multiple compositional regression analyses will be employed in R, with significance set at p<0.05. Results: In total, 141 parent-child dyads are participating. Preliminary results (n=25) show 515.71 (SD=89.64) minutes of PA/day, 172.67 (SD=54.64) minutes of SB/day, and 623.08 (SD=44.64) minutes of sleep/day. Regression models will investigate which parenting constructs contribute to a more favourable 24-hour composition, characterized by increased physical activity, reduced sedentary behaviour, and sufficient sleep. The results will be available and presented at ISPAH 2024. Conclusion and practical implications: A comprehensive understanding of the parenting constructs influencing a favourable 24-hour movement behaviour composition might provide actionable guidance for promoting healthier movement behaviours in preschoolers. Funding: Special Research Fund – Ghent University