Physical Activity Drops During Summer Holidays for 6- to 9-Year-Old Children

15Citations
Citations of this article
60Readers
Mendeley users who have this article in their library.

Abstract

Regular physical activity (PA) reduces the health risk of childhood obesity and associated chronic diseases as well as mental health problems. Since PA declines as children age as well with future generations it is of highest importance to intervene in school and out-of-school settings. Out-of-school periods affect children's PA as it is mainly left to the interest and motivation of their parents. We compared accelerometer-based PA patterns in 93 6- to 9-year old children assessed four times: before (May/June), during (August), and after (September) summer holidays and at a 1-year follow up (May/June). Before summer holidays children were assessed also for anthropometry and motor tests. During summer holidays overall PA decreased by 18% (p < 0.001), physical inactivity increased by 5.5% (p < 0.001), moderate PA decreased by 53% (p < 0.001) and moderate to vigorous PA decreased by 45% (p < 0.001) when compared to before summer holidays. Furthermore, overall PA remained diminished also after summer holidays by 8.8% (p = 0.001) but recovered to baseline values at 1-year follow up. About 30% of overall PA and moderate to vigorous PA decrease during summer holidays could be explained by children's fitness level as a greater decrease was found in children with better results in standing long jump and 300-meter running time. Our finding detects an alarming summer holiday decrease in children PA that should not be neglected in future studies and intervention designs.

References Powered by Scopus

Evidence based physical activity for school-age youth

2830Citations
N/AReaders
Get full text

Validation and calibration of physical activity monitors in children

825Citations
N/AReaders
Get full text

Impact of the COVID-19 virus outbreak on movement and play behaviours of Canadian children and youth: A national survey

775Citations
N/AReaders
Get full text

Cited by Powered by Scopus

Global Matrix 4.0 Physical Activity Report Card Grades for Children and Adolescents: Results and Analyses From 57 Countries

196Citations
N/AReaders
Get full text

Race to Beat the Heat: Climate Change Impacts Physical Activity

8Citations
N/AReaders
Get full text

Seasonal Shifts in Children's Sedentary Behaviors, Physical Activity, and Sleep: A Systematic Review and meta-Analysis

6Citations
N/AReaders
Get full text

Register to see more suggestions

Mendeley helps you to discover research relevant for your work.

Already have an account?

Cite

CITATION STYLE

APA

Volmut, T., Pišot, R., Planinšec, J., & Šimunič, B. (2021). Physical Activity Drops During Summer Holidays for 6- to 9-Year-Old Children. Frontiers in Public Health, 8. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2020.631141

Readers over time

‘21‘22‘23‘2407142128

Readers' Seniority

Tooltip

PhD / Post grad / Masters / Doc 14

61%

Lecturer / Post doc 4

17%

Researcher 3

13%

Professor / Associate Prof. 2

9%

Readers' Discipline

Tooltip

Sports and Recreations 8

40%

Nursing and Health Professions 4

20%

Social Sciences 4

20%

Medicine and Dentistry 4

20%

Save time finding and organizing research with Mendeley

Sign up for free
0