Neuroelectric indices of pre-motor planning and adiposity are selectively related to balance in children.

BACKGROUND: Motor function and weight status are components of physical fitness that have been implicated in childhood motor and cognitive development. The lateralized readiness potential (LRP), an index of motor planning and action, can provide context surrounding relationships between fitness and brain activity underlying cognitive and motor functions. This study evaluated the relationship between the LRP and motor skills, as well as associations between weight status and neural and behavioral motor functions. METHODS: Children aged 7-13 (n = 35) participated in a cross-sectional study, using the Movement Assessment Battery for Children 2nd edition (MABC-2) to assess balance, manual dexterity, and aiming/catching. The stimulus- (LRP-S) and response-locked (LRP-R) LRPs were elicited from a modified flanker task. Stepwise regressions tested the association between LRPs and MABC-2 components. Linear regressions were conducted to examine BMI and %Fat in relation to LRPs and MABC-2 components. RESULTS: Analyses revealed that LRP-S mean amplitude difference (ß = 0.401, P = 0.042) and reaction time interference scores (ß = 0.545, P = 0.004) were positively associated with balance, after adjusting for covariates. The LRP-S and interference scores did not predict other MABC-2 outcomes and LRP-R did not predict any MABC-2 components. Further, %Fat (ß = -0.439, P = 0.044), not BMI (ß = -0.364, P = 0.082), only predicted balance. CONCLUSION: We found that changes in the LRP-S amplitude were positively associated with balance, and %Fat was negatively related to balance. This evidence is that fitness components such as weight status and coordination are related to neural markers of motor function which may be useful in intervention designs aimed to improve brain function via improvements in physical fitness and health behaviors.

System for Observing Play and Leisure Activity in Youth: A Systematic Review of US and Canadian Studies.

BACKGROUND: The System of Observing Play and Leisure Activity in Youth (SOPLAY) has assisted in providing valid and reliable data of youth physical activity and characteristics specific to environmental contexts. The review aimed to examine empirical research that employed the SOPLAY instrument to measure physical activity in leisure-based activity environments in North American countries. METHODS: The review was conducted in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses. A systematic search was conducted with an exhaustive process using 10 electronic databases to locate peer-reviewed studies implementing SOPLAY that were published between 2000 and 2021. RESULTS: A total of 60 studies were included in the review. Most studies (n = 35) reported physical activity findings related to contextual characteristics measured using SOPLAY. Interestingly, a few of the studies (n = 8) found the provision of equipment and supervision, particularly adult supervision, significantly increased child physical activity observed. CONCLUSIONS: This review provides information relative to the group-level physical activity observed across multiple contexts (ie, playgrounds, parks, recreation centers) using a validated direct observation instrument.

Effects of a Summer Physical Activity Program on Fitness and Cognitive Function among Children from Low Socioeconomic Households.

During the summer months, school aged children experience a loss in academic gains made over the course of the school year, as well as engage in poorer health behaviors such as decreased physical activity and poor diet that can lead to excess weight gain. This study aimed to assess changes in body composition, fitness, and cognitive abilities in children from low-income households after a summer physical activity program and explored whether time spent in moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) was related to these changes. Participant's (N = 77) body composition, aerobic fitness (i.e., PACER), and cognitive function (i.e., modified flanker task) were measured during week 1 and week 3. MVPA was collected via hip accelerometer worn during program hours. Paired t-tests and regression analyses were conducted to determine changes between week 1 and 3, whether participation was related to changes in fitness, adiposity, and cognitive function. T-tests revealed significant changes in PACER score (10.71 ± 7.72 to 13.301 ± 10.68; p < 0.001) and incongruent accuracy on the flanker task (65.94% ± 23.83 to 69.00% ± 21.89; p < 0.006), however no significant change in BMI-for-age percentile or body fat percentage was detected. Additionally, regression analyses revealed no significant relationship between change in MVPA or attendance, and changes in PACER, flanker task performance, BMI, or body fat percentage. Children that participated in a summer physical activity program targeted toward children affected by poverty exhibited significant improvements in cardiorespiratory fitness and cognitive abilities, and no changes in body composition.