Purpose
Published experiences of using accelerometers in very young children are scarce. This study tested the usability of one accelerometer type, ActiGraph GT3X, in assessing free-living physical activity of 1.5 year-old Malawian children.
Methods
Fifty-two Malawian children [23 boys, mean age 17.0 months (range 16.0 – 18.5), mean HAZ -0.83, mean WHZ 0.08] from rural Lungwena ...
Background
African American youth residing in the South are at high risk for obesity and physical inactivity. A growing body of evidence suggests that persons living in activity-friendly environments engage in more physical activity (PA); however, access of public recreational facilities varies by neighborhood and demographic characteristics. Additionally, historical and ...
Background
Changes in physical activity (PA) levels can be observed among youth. The majority of 11 year olds in Denmark do meet the recommend level of PA; the majority of 15 year olds do not. The chances of not meeting the recommended level of PA as adults are correlated with not meeting ...
Background
Hispanic-American preschool children have higher rates of obesity and Hispanic-American youth may be at higher risk for sedentary lifestyles and metabolic syndrome. Both physical and social environmental factors influence young children’s physical activity. The ability to simultaneously capture objective measurement of physical activity and location of young Hispanic-American ...
Background
Evidence suggests that parents play an important role in shaping children’s physical activity levels through behavioral modeling and support. Physically active parents are more likely to have physically active children. However, research indicates that on average, parents and children spend less than 5 minutes per day engaging in physical ...
Background
Determining the relation of built environment characteristics to physical activity and obesity remains an ongoing public health concern. Recent literature suggests that environment characteristics of smart growth planning (e.g., walkability, preservation of open space) may promote physical activity. However, the majority of studies examining associations between these environmental ...
Background
Research studies have shown the importance of built environment in affecting people’s physical activity. Lack of sidewalks, nearby parks, and recreation centers in the neighborhood are believed to be some of the key environmental barriers to physical activity. On the other hand, factors such as presence of crosswalks, ...
Background
Humans have an innate connection and attraction to nature, often referred to as ‘biophilia.’ Exposure to nature has been reported to have a positive impact on health, and several studies have documented that engaging in physical activity outdoors improves mental health and well being. Exact mechanisms remain unknown but ...
Background Due to concern about United States (US) levels of physical activity among youth, in 2009 the American Academy of Pediatrics released a policy statement promoting environments and policies favoring physical activity, such as consideration of easier access to parks and open space. Parks provide free or low cost public space ...
A problem exists in applying the kinetic energy equation KE mv2 to estimates of energy expenditure based on activity counts over long epochs. The instantaneous velocity should be obtained over short time periods (on the order of 0.1 second) and squared to obtain the instantaneous kinetic energy. The instantaneous KE is ...