Browsing by Author "Santos, Rute"
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- Associações entre actividade física, habilidades e coordenação motora em crianças portuguesasPublication . Lopes, Luís; Lopes, Vitor P.; Santos, Rute; Pereira, BeatrizNowadays, there is growing evidence in literature that Health benefits from regular physical activity (PA). The variance in PA among children is caused by a number of factors including their motor abilities and coordination. The aim of the study was to analyse the relation between usual PA and gross motor abilities and motor coordination in children aged 6 to 7 years. The sample comprised 21 children, aged in average 6,38±0,50 years. Physical activity was accessed by accelerometry, gross motor abilities by using the Test of Gross Motor Development (TGMD-2) and motor coordination by using the Körperkoordination Test für Kinder (KTK). Subjects met the international recommendations for daily PA; in motor coordination 47,6% of children met normal coordination, nobody reach good or very good coordination, the majority (52,4%) revelled disturbances or insufficiencies of coordination; in locomotion TGMD-2 76,2% of the children met percentile 50 or superior (P50), in object control TGMD-2 28,6% of the children reach P50 or superior, in total TGMD-2 38,1% of the children met P50 or superior. PA was positively correlated with TGMD-2 object control. Low performance attributed to the children in TGMD-2 and KTK tests could be an indicative of insufficient in the development of coordination and gross motor abilities; therefore we believe that this kind of intervention should be targeted at school children mainly in Physical Education classes.
- Associations between fruit and vegetable variety and low-grade inflammation in Portuguese adolescents from LabMed physical activity studyPublication . Almeida-de-Souza, Juliana; Santos, Rute; Lopes, Luís; Abreu, Sandra; Moreira, Carla; Padrão, Patrícia; Mota, Jorge; Moreira, PedroPurpose: The dietary guidelines for the consumption of a variety of fruits and vegetables have been recognized as an important factor for achieving healthy eating patterns to reduce the risk of chronic disease throughout the lifespan. Our aim is to assess the association between fruit and vegetable variety and low-grade inflammation in adolescents. Methods: This cross-sectional analysis was conducted with 412 adolescents (ages 14.4 ± 1.7 years; 52% girls). The consumption of a variety of fruits and vegetables was assessed with a food-frequency questionnaire, considering the number of individual/category of fruit or vegetable intake at least once month, and categorized into tertiles. Blood samples were collected to determine C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6), complement component 3 (C3), and 4 (C4). We created categories of lower or higher (inflammatory state) for each biomarker, considering sex- and age-adjusted median values. Then, we computed an overall inflammatory score, by adding all points awarded wherein one point was assigned if biomarker was higher or zero if lower, and created categories of 0–1 or 2–4 biomarkers above the median. The odds ratio (OR) and 95% interval confidence (95% CI) were calculated from binary logistic regression to estimate the magnitude of association between fruit and vegetable variety and inflammatory biomarkers. Results: Adolescents with a greater variety of vegetable consumption (≥13 categories/month) had lower odds of having a higher CRP (OR 0.31, 95% CI 0.15–0.64, ptrend = 0.004) when compared to those with lower variety consumption (≤6 categories/month), independent of vegetable quantity intake. However, a greater variety of fruit consumption (≥12 categories/month) had higher odds of having a higher IL-6 (OR 4.41, 95% CI 1.67–11.71, ptrend = 0.012), C3 (OR 3.30, 95% CI 1.23–8.86, ptrend = 0.047), and inflammatory score (OR 4.90, 95% CI 1.62–14.86, ptrend = 0.017), when compared to those with lower variety consumption (≤9 categories/month), independent of fruit quantity intake, only for girls. Conclusions: The consumption of a variety of vegetables is inversely associated with lower CRP. This finding supports the current dietary guidelines regarding the consumption of a variety of vegetables. The role of fruit variety in low-grade inflammation should be further studied.
- Associations between gross Motor Coordination and Academic Achievement in elementary school childrenPublication . Lopes, Luís; Santos, Rute; Pereira, Beatriz; Lopes, Vitor P.We aimed to evaluate the relationship between gross motor coordination (MC) and academic achievement (AA) in a sample of Portuguese children aged 9–12 years. The study took place during the 2009/2010 school year and involved 596 urban children (281 girls) from the north of Portugal. AA was assessed using the Portuguese Language and Mathematics National Exams. Gross MC was evaluated with the Körperkoordination Test für Kinder. Cardiorespiratory fitness was predicted by a maximal multistage 20-m shuttle-run test of the Fitnessgram Test Battery. Body weight and height were measured following standard procedures. Socio-economic status was based on annual family income. Logistic Regression was used to analyze the association of gross MC with AA. 51.6% of the sample exhibited MC disorders or MC insufficiency and none of the participants showed very good MC. In both genders, children with insufficient MC or MC disorders exhibited a higher probability of having low AA, compared with those with normal or good MC (p < .05 for trend for both) after adjusting for cardiorespiratory fitness, body mass index and socio-economic status.
- Associations between sedentary behavior and motor coordination in childrenPublication . Lopes, Luís; Santos, Rute; Pereira, Beatriz; Lopes, Vitor P.Objectives: This study was conducted to evaluate the relationship between objectively measured sedentary behavior (SB) and motor coordination (MC) in Portuguese children, accounting for physical activity (PA), accelerometer wear time, waist-to-height ratio, and mother’s education level. Methods: A cross-sectional school-based study was conducted on 213 children (110 girls and 103 boys) aged 9–10 in the north of Portugal during the spring of 2010. Accelerometers were used to obtain detailed objective information about daily PA and SB over five consecutive days. MC was measured with a body coordination test (Korperkoordination Test für Kinder). Waist and height were measured by standardized protocols and the waist-to-height ratio (WHtR) was calculated. A questionnaire was used to assess mothers’ educational levels. Receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) and logistic regressions were used. Results: ROC analysis showed that sedentary time significantly discriminated between children with low MC and high MC, with a best trade off between sensitivity and specificity being achieved at 77.29% and 76.48% for girls and boys, respectively (P < 0.05 for both). In both genders, the low sedentary group had significantly higher odds of having good MC than the higher sedentary group, independent of PA, accelerometer wear time, WHtR, and mother’s education level (P < 0.05 for both). Conclusions: Our findings suggested that PA levels per se may not overcome the deleterious influence of high levels of SB on MC. Our data stress the importance of discouraging
- Dietary inflammatory index and inflammatory biomarkers in adolescents from LabMed physical activity studyPublication . Almeida-de-Souza, Juliana; Santos, Rute; Barros, Renata; Abreu, Sandra; Moreira, Carla; Lopes, Luís; Mota, Jorge; Moreira, PedroBackground/objectives The dietary inflammatory index (DII) is a tool to measure the diet’s inflammatory potential and has been used with adults to predict low-grade inflammation. The present study aims to assess whether this dietary score predicts low-grade inflammation in adolescents. Subjects/methods The sample comprises 329 adolescents (55.9% girls), aged 12–18 years, from LabMed Physical Activity Study. DII score was calculated based on a food-frequency questionnaire and categorized into tertiles. We collected blood samples to determine the follow inflammatory biomarkers: C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6), complement component 3 (C3), and 4 (C4). In addition we calculated an overall inflammatory biomarker score. Odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (95%CI) were computed from binary logistic regression models. Results DII score, comparing first with third tertile, was positively associated with IL-6 in crude model (OR = 1.88, 95% CI:1.09–3.24, ptrend = 0.011) and in fully adjusted (for biological and lifestyle variables) (OR = 3.38, 95%CI:1.24–9.20, ptrend = 0.023). Also, DII score was positively associated with C4, when fully adjusted (OR = 3.12, 95%CI:1.21–8.10, ptrend = 0.016). DII score was negatively associated with C3 in crude model, comparing first with second but not with third tertile, and no significant associations in fully adjusted model were observed, although a trend was found (OR = 1.71, 95% CI:0.63–4.66, ptrend = 0.044). No significant associations were observed between DII score and CRP. However, DII score was positively associated with the overall inflammatory biomarker score, when fully adjusted (OR = 5.61, 95% CI:2.00–15.78, ptrend = 0.002). Conclusions DII score can be useful to assess the diet’s inflammatory potential and its association with low-grade inflammation in adolescents.
- Flexibility is associated with motor competence in schoolchildrenPublication . Lopes, Luís; Póvoas, S.; Mota, Jorge; Okely, A.D.; Coelho-e-Silva, M.J.; Cliff, D.P.; Lopes, Vitor P.; Santos, RuteAvailable data on the associations between motor competence (MC) and flexibility are limited and result inconclusive. This study aims to examine the relationship between flexibility and MC in children. The sample comprised 596 Portuguese children (47.1% girls) aged 9.7± 0.6 years. Motor competence was evaluated with the body coordination test, Korperkoordination Test fur Kinder. Cardiorespiratory fitness (20-m shuttle run), muscular strength (curl-up and push-up tests), and flexibility (back-saver sit and reach and trunk-lift tests) were evaluated using the Fitnessgram Test Battery. Z-scores by age and gender for the physical fitness tests were constructed. Analysis of variance and regression analysis were performed. Participants in the healthy zone groups of both flexibility tests exhibited significantly better scores of MC than the participants under the healthy zone (P < 0.001). Back-saver sit and reach and trunk-lift Z-scores, either individually or as a sum, were significant predictors of MC (P < 0.05 for all) after adjustments for the other physical fitness components, age, body mass index, and socioeconomic status, in both genders. Our findings highlight the importance of promoting and developing flexibility, as well as the other health-related physical fitness components in schoolchildren to reach adequate levels of MC
- A importância do recreio escolar na atividade física das criançasPublication . Lopes, Luís; Santos, Rute; Lopes, Vitor P.; Pereira, BeatrizOs benefícios da atividade física em crianças e adolescentes são bem conhecidos e estão bem fundamentados na literatura. Em idade escolar, a manutenção de níveis adequados de atividade física visa sobretudo o crescimento e desenvolvimento saudável e normal, para além da criação de hábitos de atividade física que se irão prolongar ao longo da vida. As escolas são locais com potencial para serem promovidos comportamentos saudáveis. No contexto escolar, o recreio é reconhecidamente um tempo e um espaço importante no âmbito da promoção da atividade física em crianças. Dadas as suas características o recreio apresenta-se como uma excelente oportunidade de acumular atividade física ao longo do dia, além de outros benefícios, nomeadamente de aspetos: sociais (partilha, cooperação, comunicação, resolução de conflitos, auto disciplina, etc.); emocionais (libertação do stress, auto estima, desenvolvimento do carácter, etc.); e cognitivos (criatividade, resolução de problemas e vocabulário, etc.). Resultados de diversos estudos permitem-nos concluir que as crianças beneficiam com intervenções no recreio escolar. Supervisão, encorajamento, pinturas multicolores do espaço de recreio com jogos infantis e imagens coloridas sugestivas, equipamentos móveis de jogo, e aumento do tempo passado no recreio são exemplos bem-sucedidos e com baixos custos de intervenções realizadas com o propósito de aumentar a atividade física diária das crianças. Redesenhar o espaço com pinturas multicolores e alterações estruturais do espaço físico do recreio, é outro tipo de intervenção realizada. O recreio escolar afigura-se como um espaço privilegiado de promoção de hábitos de atividade física nas crianças, não devendo por isso ser negligenciado.
- Maternal perceptions of children's weight statusPublication . Lopes, Luís; Santos, Rute; Pereira, Beatriz; Lopes, Vitor P.Several studies have addressed mothers’ perceptions of their children’s weight status; however, there is no investigation on Portuguese children (a country with one of the highest levels of children’s overweight and obesity in Europe). The aim of this study was to quantify maternal misclassification of child weight status in a sample of Portuguese children aged 9 to 12 years, according to gender, family income, and maternal weight status, education level and age. Methods Data were collected in a school-based study (school year 2009/2010) in northern Portugal with 499 urban children (236 girls; 47.3%). Body mass index was calculated from measurements of height and weight [body mass (kg)/height (m2)]. Mothers’ perceptions of child’s weight status, age, height and weight were accessed by a questionnaire. Children’s age, gender and socio-economic status were extracted from the schools’ administrative record systems. Cohen’s Kappa was used to analyse the misperceptions and the agreement between children’s objectively measured weight status and mothers’ perception of their child’s weight status. Results The prevalence of underweight, overweight and obesity in children was 4.6%, 25.5% and 6.4%, respectively. A proportion of 65.2% of underweight and 61.6% of overweight/obese children were misclassified by their mothers. For the majority of variables presented, the values of agreement were fair (k ranged from 0.257 to 0.486), but were statistically significant. Significant differences in the percentages of mothers who correctly classified their children’s weight status were only found among the most educated in the overweight/obese group and among the normal-weight mothers in the underweight group. Conclusions Many mothers do not properly recognize their children’s weight status and frequently underestimate their children’s body size.
- Objectively measured sedentary time and academic achievement in schoolchildrenPublication . Lopes, Luís; Santos, Rute; Mota, Jorge; Pereira, Beatriz; Lopes, Vitor P.This study aimed to evaluate the relationship between objectively measured total sedentary time and academic achievement (AA) in Portuguese children. The sample comprised of 213 children (51.6% girls) aged 9.46 ± 0.43 years, from the north of Portugal. Sedentary time was measured with accelerometry, and AA was assessed using the Portuguese Language and Mathematics National Exams results. Multilevel linear regression models were fitted to assess regression coefficients predicting AA. The results showed that objectively measured total sedentary time was not associated with AA, after adjusting for potential confounders
- Sensitivity and specificity of different measures of adiposity to distinguish between low/high motor coordinationPublication . Lopes, Luís; Santos, Rute; Moreira, C.; Pereira, Beatriz; Lopes, Vitor P.This study aimed to determine the ability of different measures of adiposity to discriminate between low/high motor coordination and to evaluate the relationship between different measures of adiposity and motor coordination. METHODS: This study included 596 elementary school children aged 9 to 12 years (218 females - 47.1%). Weight, height, and waist circumference were objectively measured by standardized protocols. Body fat percentage was estimated by bioelectric impedance. Body mass index and waist-to-height ratio were computed. Motor coordination was assessed by the Korperkoordination Test fur Kinder. Cardiorespiratory fitness was predicted by a maximal multistage 20 m shuttle-run test of the Fitnessgram Test Battery. A questionnaire was used to assess the maternal educational level. RESULTS: The receiver operating characteristic performance of body fat percentage in females and waist circumference in males presented a slightly better discriminatory accuracy than body mass index, waist circumference and waist-to-height ratio in predicting low motor coordination. After adjustments, logistic regression analyses showed that body mass index (beta=2.155; 95%CI: 1.164-3.992; p=0.015 for girls; beta=3.255; 95% CI: 1.740-6.088; p<0.001 for males), waist circumference (beta=2.489; 95%CI:1.242-4.988; p=0.010 for girls; beta=3.296; 95%CI:1.784-6.090; p<0.001 for males), body fat percentage (beta=2.395; 95%CI:1.234-4.646; p=0.010 for girls; beta=2.603; 95%CI:1.462-4.634; p<0.001 for males) and waist-to-height ratio (beta=3.840; 95%CI:2.025-7.283; p<0.001 for males) were positively and significantly associated with motor coordination in both sexes, with the exception of waist-to-height ratio in girls (beta=1.343; 95%CI:0.713-2.528; p=0.381)