Associations between children's independent mobility and physical activity

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aut.relation.volume14en_NZ
aut.researcherOliver, Melody
dc.contributor.authorSchoeppe, Sen_NZ
dc.contributor.authorDuncan, MJen_NZ
dc.contributor.authorBadland, HMen_NZ
dc.contributor.authorOliver, Men_NZ
dc.contributor.authorBrowne, Men_NZ
dc.date.accessioned2016-01-25T21:15:44Z
dc.date.available2016-01-25T21:15:44Z
dc.date.copyright2014-01-29en_NZ
dc.date.issued2014-01-29en_NZ
dc.description.abstractBackground: Independent mobility describes the freedom of children to travel and play in public spaces without adult supervision. The potential benefits for children are significant such as social interactions with peers, spatial and traffic safety skills and increased physical activity. Yet, the health benefits of independent mobility, particularly on physical activity accumulation, are largely unexplored. This study aimed to investigate associations of children’s independent mobility with light, moderate-to-vigorous, and total physical activity accumulation. Methods: In 2011 - 2012, 375 Australian children aged 8-13 years (62% girls) were recruited into a cross-sectional study. Children’s independent mobility (i.e. independent travel to school and non-school destinations, independent outdoor play) and socio-demographics were assessed through child and parent surveys. Physical activity intensity was measured objectively through an Actiheart monitor worn on four consecutive days. Associations between independent mobility and physical activity variables were analysed using generalized linear models, accounting for clustered sampling, Actiheart wear time, socio-demographics, and assessing interactions by sex. Results: Independent travel (walking, cycling, public transport) to school and non-school destinations were not associated with light, moderate-to-vigorous and total physical activity. However, sub-analyses revealed a positive association between independent walking and cycling (excluding public transport) to school and total physical but only in boys (b = 36.03, p < 0.05). Frequent independent outdoor play (three or more days per week) was positively associated with light and total physical activity (b = 29.76, p < 0.01 and b = 32.43, p = 0.03, respectively). No significant associations were found between independent outdoor play and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity. When assessing differences by sex, the observed significant associations of independent outdoor play with light and total physical activity remained in girls but not in boys. All other associations showed no significant differences by sex. Conclusions: Independent outdoor play may boost children’s daily physical activity levels, predominantly at light intensity. Hence, facilitating independent outdoor play could be a viable intervention strategy to enhance physical activity in children, particularly in girls. Associations between independent travel and physical activity are inconsistent overall and require further investigation.
dc.identifier.citationBMC Public Health 2014, 14:91 http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2458/14/91en_NZ
dc.identifier.doi10.1186/1471-2458-14-91en_NZ
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10292/9403
dc.publisherBioMed Central Ltd.
dc.relation.urihttp://dx.doi.org/10.1186/1471-2458-14-91
dc.rights© 2014 Schoeppe et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
dc.rights.accessrightsOpenAccessen_NZ
dc.subjectCross-sectional; Active travel; Unsupervised outdoor play; Movement; Young people; Actiheart
dc.titleAssociations between children's independent mobility and physical activityen_NZ
dc.typeJournal Article
pubs.elements-id160514
pubs.organisational-data/AUT
pubs.organisational-data/AUT/Health & Environmental Science
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