RESUMO
BACKGROUND: Physical activity (PA) is an important agent in the prevention of chronic diseases such as obesity. OBJECTIVES: To provide preliminary data on PA among school children and to correlate the PA with weight status. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A total of 40 children aged between 8 and 11 years and attending Tunisian schools were recruited. The body composition was determined by using the deuterium oxide dilution technique. PA was determined by the PAQ-C (PA Questionnaire for Older Children). An objective monitoring of PA and sedentary time was achieved by using ActiGraph GT3X + accelerometers. RESULTS: PAQ-C data demonstrate that 20% of the sample had light PA levels and 80% had moderate PA levels. Times spent in sedentary (62.37%) and light (30.80%) activities were higher than that spent in moderate and vigorous (6.83%) activities. Furthermore, almost half of the sample spent more than 60 min per day in moderate-to-vigorous intensity PA (MVPA). The average MVPA was significantly higher in normal weight than overweight and obese groups (67.68 ± 20.98 vs. 49.07 ± 19.09, p = 0.007). The proportion of overweight children who spent more than 60 min per day in MVPA was significantly higher than that of normal-weight (60.9 vs. 29.4%; p = 0.049). CONCLUSION: This study indicates that half of school children comply with the health-based guidelines for PA and sedentary behavior. Our findings also suggest that obesity was associated with decrease in PA in Tunisian children.
Assuntos
Acelerometria , Exercício Físico , Inquéritos e Questionários , Composição Corporal , Peso Corporal , Criança , Deutério , Feminino , Humanos , Técnicas de Diluição do Indicador , Masculino , Obesidade , Sobrepeso , Comportamento Sedentário , Estudantes , TunísiaRESUMO
Vitamin E supplements could be beneficial for postmenopausal women. To evaluate the effect of edible argan oil consumption on the antioxidant status of postmenopausal women, the vitamin E serum level of 151 menopausal women consuming either olive or argan oil was determined. Serum level of vitamin E was increased in the argan oil consumer group. Therefore, an argan oil-enriched diet can be recommended to help prevent some postmenopausal disorders.