Motor coordination, body mass index, and sport participation in 6-11 years old children

Introduction. Motor coordination (MC) in childhood plays a crucial role in the physical and psychological health in childhood and even throughout the lifespan. Nevertheless a decline in MC among children and an increase in child obesity have been reported. The aim of this study was to examine the MC level in 6-11 years old Italian children and its relationship with BMI and sport participation. Methods. A sample of 240 Italian children of both gender participated in the study. Participants were divided into three groups according to age and school grade: 1° grade (G1) (n=90, range=6-7 years; h=1.23±0.05 m; w=24.9±3.9 kg); 3° grade (G3) (n=66, range=8-9 years; h=1.34±0.05 m; w=32.3±5.3 kg); 5° grade (G5) (n=86, range=10-11 years; h=1.47±0.06 m; w=40.2±8.1 kg). Motor coordination was assessed through the Körperkoordinationstest für Kinder (KTK). Cut off points for BMI in childhood were used to categorize the participants as underweight (UW), normal (NW), overweight (OW) and obese (OB). Physical activity (PA) of the parents was evaluated with a questionnaire (IPAQ) with attached a dichotomous question about the participation in organized sport activities of their children. Results. A significant decrease of MQ was found from G1 to G5 (G1, 99.7±7.4; G3, 90±6.65, G5, 84.6±7.4). As for BMI, results showed an increase of OW and OB children from G1 (OW=11%; OB=1%) to G3 (OW=32%; OB=3%) and G5 (OW=29%; OB=9%). A significant association was found between BMI and MQ. OW and OB categories had an MQ value significantly lower than NW and UW (93.55±11.35 vs 86.2±8.9). As for PA, a significant association was found between parents IPAQ and children MQ. Parents with a high level of PA have children with higher MQ (93.4±10) respect to parents with a low level of PA (88.7±9.1). No difference in MQ and BMI was found between children involved in organized sport activities and children not involved. Discussion. These data confirm a significant decrease in MC over the years together with an alarming increase in child obesity. Relationship between parents PA and children MQ suggest that family environment could have great influence in MC. The inconsistent relationship between BMI and MC and sport activity suggest that children probably don’t achieve a sufficient stimulus during their organized activity. In conclusion, efforts should be made in order to face the decline in MC, to promote healthy eating habits and adequate levels of physical activities. References Cole T, et al. (2000). BMJ;320:1–6 Vandorpe B, et al. (2011). Scand J Med Sci Sports, 378-388