Physical Activity and Sleep Quality in Spanish Primary School Children: Mediation of Sex and Maturational Stage.

BACKGROUND: sleep is a physiological process that is critical for physical and mental health in children. Childhood encompasses diverse developmental stages that may affect the impact of physical activity on sleep quality, which may also be influenced by sex. The purpose of this study was to examine the mediation effect of sex and, as well as maturational stage on the association between physical activity and sleep quality, among primary school children. METHODS: this was a cross-sectional study of 954 Spanish primary school students (437 early childhood and 517 middle childhood) with a mean age of 10.5 ± 1.2 years. Participants reported their sleep quality using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index and their physical activity levels using the Physical Activity Questionnaire. RESULTS: our study found that physical activity is associated with improved sleep quality in children, particularly during middle childhood. Higher physical activity was linked to better sleep quality and reduced sleep latency (p = 0.044). Sleep quality was generally better in males than in females (p = 0.002) and was also better in early than middle childhood (p = 0.000). CONCLUSIONS: especially in middle childhood, physical activity promotes children's sleep quality. Thus, educational institutions should promote or improve the implementation of physical activity in the school context in order to benefit children's sleep quality and, hence, improve their quality of life and wellbeing.

Sleep quality is mediated by physical activity level in adolescents.

BACKGROUND: Sleep is essential for the adolescent's health and well-being. Despite existing evidence of the positive relationship between physical activity and quality of sleep, some other factors could mediate this association. The purpose of the present study was to clarify the interaction between the level of physical activity and sleep in adolescents depending on their gender. METHODS: A total of 12,459 subjects 11 to 19 years old (5073 male and 5016 female) reported data regarding their quality of sleep and their level of physical activity. RESULTS: Better quality of sleep was reported by males regardless of the level of physical activity (d=0.25, P<0.001). Better quality of sleep was reported by active subjects (P<0.05), and it improved in both sexes as the level of physical activity was higher (P<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Male adolescents have better sleep quality than females regardless of their competitive level. The higher the adolescents' physical activity level the higher the quality of sleep.

A comparison of modelled serum cTnT and cTnI kinetics after 60 min swimming.

Post-exercise elevations of cardiac troponin T (cTnT) and I (cTnI) are often used in isolation but interpreted interchangeably. Research suggests, however, that post-exercise cTn kinetic might differ with each isoform. In this cross-sectional observational study, we collected blood samples before, immediately after (5 minutes), and at 1-, 3-, 6-, 12-, and 24-hour post-exercise in a mixed cohort of 56 participants after a distance-trial of 60 min continuous swimming (age range from 14 to 22, 57.1% female). Cardiac troponin kinetics were modelled using Bayesian mixed-effects models to estimate time to peak (TTP) and peak concentration (PC) for each isoform, while controlling for participants sex, tanner stage and average relative heart rate during the test. Exercise induced an elevation of cTnT and cTnI in 93% and 75% of the participants, respectively. Cardiac troponin T peaked earlier, at 2.9 h (CI: 2.6 - 3.2 h) post-exercise, whereas cTnI peaked later, at 4.5 h (CI: 4.2 - 4.9 h). Peak concentrations for cTnT and cTnI were 2.5 ng/L, CI: 0 - 11.2 ng/L and 2.16 ng/L, CI: 0 - 22.7 ng/L, respectively. Additionally, we did not observe a systematic effect of sex and maturational status mediating cTn responses.

Exercise Addiction Stability and Health Effects. A 6-Month Follow-up Postcompetition Study in Amateur Endurance Cyclists.

OBJECTIVE: To study the longitudinal stability of exercise addiction and its health effects in apparently healthy amateur endurance cyclists from pre- to 6-month post-competition. METHODS: In total, 330 (30 women) adult cyclists were divided into 4 groups based on scores on the Exercise Addiction Inventory at both periods: nonrisk (n=262, 79.1%), transient (n=35, 10.6%), emerging (n=14, 4.2%) and persistent (n=20, 6.1%). RESULTS: The prevalence of high-risk exercise addiction was reduced postcompetition (16.7% vs 10.3%, P = 0.017). Of the cyclists with a high precompetition risk of exercise addiction, 63.6% (35/55) had a transient addiction associated with favorable effects on mental quality of life (effect size [ES]=0.52, 95% confidence interval: [0.20, 0.86]) and sleep quality (ES=-0.50 [-0.89, -0.12]) and avoided the worsening of depression symptom severity compared to the remaining groups (ES range=0.51-0.65). The 5.1% (14/275) of cyclists with a precompetition low risk of exercise addiction presented emerging exercise addiction that was associated with a worsened mental quality of life compared to the remaining groups (ES ranged 0.59-0.91), sleep quality compared to the nonrisk (ES=-0.56 [-0.02, -1.10]) and transient (ES=-0.72 [-1.36, -0.08]) groups and anxiety symptom severity compared to the persistent group (ES=0.51 [1.20,-0.19]). CONCLUSIONS: Exercise addiction had a marked transitory component at 6-month postcompetition with associated health benefits in amateur endurance cyclists.

Training volume and amateur cyclists' health: a six-month follow-up from coinciding with a high-demand cycling event.

This study aimed to analyse the longitudinal association of amateur cycling training volume with health by comparing the proximity of participation in a high-demand cycling event. Variations in cycling training volume, behavioural cardiometabolic risk factors, and physical and psychosocial health were examined. Cyclists decreased their training volume by approximately 40% and their total physical activity volumes by approximately 20%, while controls maintained (~5%). A time*group interaction was found for men's physical conditioning, body mass index and anxiety and, independent of gender, for behavioural cardiometabolic risk factors. Variation in cycling training volume was positively correlated with variation in physical conditioning and total physical activity and negatively correlated with variation in body mass index. The high level of cycling training volume developed at the time coinciding with a high demand cycling event predisposes to better physical health and behavioural cardiometabolic risk factors, without negatively affect psychosocial health, compared with six month later.

Exercise Addiction and Its Relationship with Health Outcomes in Indoor Cycling Practitioners in Fitness Centers.

We studied the prevalence and possible association between exercise addiction and health in indoor cycling practitioners. In 1014 (492 women) adult indoor cyclists and 926 (597 women) controls with low levels of physical activity according to the short form of the International Physical Activity Questionnaire, we examined the risk of exercise addiction according to the Exercise Addiction Inventory and several health outcomes through a web-based experiment. The prevalence of a high risk of exercise addiction in cyclists was 13.3%, and it was higher in men than in women (16.5% vs. 10.0%, p = 0.002). Women cyclists with a high risk of exercise addiction had higher levels of physical activity (p < 0.001; effect size = -0.62, 95% CI: (-0.91, -0.32)) and anxiety symptom severity (p = 0.001; Effect Size (ES) = -0.59 (-0.89, -0.30)) than those with a low risk. For both sexes, cyclists with a low risk of exercise addiction had better social function, emotional role, and anxiety symptom severity compared with the controls (all p < 0.002; ES ranged from 0.25 to 0.47). Higher anxiety symptom severity and cardiorespiratory fitness were the main determinants of exercise addiction in cyclists (both p < 0.001). Our data suggest the importance of considering exercise addiction in indoor cyclists.

Amateur endurance cycling practice and adult's physical and psychosocial health: a cross-sectional study of the influence of training volume.

This study aimed to analyse the association between amateur cycling training volume and physical and psychosocial health. A cross-sectional study was developed, via self-reported survey, among 1669 cyclists and 1039 controls, where analysis of variance and hierarchical multiple linear regression test were developed. Independent of gender, high volumes of amateur endurance cycling practice benefited cyclists' body mass index and male cyclists' physical conditioning, while psychosocial health did not differ among the training volume groups. Hierarchical multiple linear regression analysis highlighted the contribution of training volume to lower cyclists' body mass index and better male cyclists' physical conditioning. All cyclist groups presented better physical and psychosocial health than controls. High volumes of amateur endurance cycling training were associated with better physical health without jeopardizing psychosocial health. The practice of amateur endurance cycling, both in low and high volumes, was associated with better physical and psychosocial health compared with inactivity.

Physical Activity and Sedentary Behavior at the End of the Human Lifespan.

To objectively assess physical activity levels and sedentary behavior in a cohort of Spanish centenarians and their nonagenarian peers. Physical activity and sedentary behavior patterns were objectively measured by an ActiGraph GT3X accelerometer in centenarians (n = 18; 83% women; 100.8 ± 0.8 [100-103] years) and nonagenarians (n = 11; 91% women; 93.3 ± 2.5 [90-98] years). Centenarians showed less counts per minute (17.6 ± 7.1 vs. 46.1 ± 23.7, p = .003, d = 1.851) and steps per day (455 ± 237 vs. 1,249 ± 776, p = .007, d = 1.587) than nonagenarians. The daily number of sedentary breaks was also lower in the former (5.0 ± 1.5 vs. 6.7 ± 2.0, p = .019, d = 0.971). When observing time distribution, the most active day period in both groups was the morning, with a peak between 10:00 and 11:59. This data suggest that the decline in physical activity levels continues to worsen until the end of the human lifespan.

Adherencia a la dieta mediterránea en adultos inactivos, practicantes de ciclo indoory ciclistas aficionados / Adherence to the Mediterranean diet in inactive adults, indoor cycling practitioners and amateur cyclists

Introducción: existe información limitada sobre la relación entre la adherencia a la dieta mediterránea (ADM) y la práctica deportiva. Objetivo: determinar la posible asociación de la práctica deportiva y el volumen de entrenamiento en bicicleta con la ADM y la influencia de la proximidad de una prueba ciclodeportiva sobre la ADM. Material y métodos: una primera evaluación de la ADM en 785 (84 mujeres) ciclistas aficionados (volumen ≥ 7 horas/semana), 514 (224 mujeres) practicantes de ciclo indoor (volumen: 2-6 horas/semana) y 718 (411 mujeres) adultos inactivos fue desarrollada en mayo, coincidiendo con la participación de los ciclistas en una prueba ciclodeportiva. Una submuestra de 359 ciclistas y 148 inactivos fueron evaluados nuevamente en noviembre, en fecha alejada de la prueba ciclodeportiva. Se utilizó el cuestionario MEDAS-14 para valorar la ADM y un cuestionario autodiseñado para evaluar el volumen de entrenamiento. Resultados: un 40% de los sujetos evidenció alta ADM. En ambos sexos, los deportistas mostraron mayor ADM que los inactivos, con los mejores índices para los grupos de ciclistas (p < 0,001). La relación entre la ADM y el volumen de entrenamiento fue débil (hombres: r = 0,137, mujeres: r = 0,173; p < 0,001). La ADM de los ciclistas disminuyó de mayo a noviembre (p < 0,001) sin cambios en los sujetos inactivos (p = 0,535). Conclusiones: la práctica deportiva en bicicleta se asocia con una mayor ADM con limitada influencia del volumen de entrenamiento y con efectos positivos transitorios de la participación en una prueba ciclodeportiva (AU)

Introduction: There is limited information referred to the relationship between adherence to the Mediterranean Diet (AMD) and sports practice. Objective: To determinate the association of cycling practice and cycling training volume with the AMD and the influence of the participation in a high-demand cyclist event on the AMD. Material and methods: A first evaluation of AMD in 785 (84 women) amateur cyclists (volume: ≥ 7 hours/week), 514 (224 women) indoor cycling practitioners (volume: 2-6 hours/week) and 718 (411 women) inactive adults was conducted in May coinciding with the participation of cyclists in a cycling event. A subsample of 359 cyclists and 148 inactive subjects agreed to be retested in November, far from the cycling event date. The MEDAS-14 questionnaire was used to assess the AMD and a self-designed questionnaire was used to assess the volume of training. Results: 40% of subjects showed high AMD. In both sexes, athletes showed higher AMD than inactive subjects, with the highest indexes for groups of cyclists (p < 0.001). The relationship between AMD and training volume was weak (men: r = 0.137, women: r = 0.173; p < 0.001). The AMD of cyclists decreased from May to November (p < 0.001) with no significant changes in inactive subjects (p = 0.535). Conclusions: Cycling is associated to higher values of AMD with a limited influence of training volume and transient positive effects of participation in a cycling endurance event (AU)

Cardiac Biomarker Release after Endurance Exercise in Male and Female Adults and Adolescents.

OBJECTIVES: To compare the responses of high-sensitivity cardiac troponin T (hs-cTnT) and NH2-terminal probrain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) after 60 minutes of swimming in male and female adults and adolescents with different pubertal status. STUDY DESIGN: Adolescent swimmers (25 male and 25 female) and adult swimmers (7 male and 9 female) participated in a 60-minute maximal swimming test with serial assessment of hs-cTnT and NT-proBNP at rest, immediately postexercise, and at 1, 3, 6, 12, and 24 hours postexercise. Adolescents were classified according to pubertal status: Tanner stages 3 (n = 14), 4 (n = 22), and 5 (n = 14). RESULTS: Exercise resulted in an increase in both biomarkers. hs-cTnT responses to exercise were similar in adolescents with different pubertal status and adults, although there was substantial individual variability in peak hs-cTnT, with the upper reference limit exceeding in 62% of the participants. Postexercise kinetics for hs-cTnT were largely consistent across all groups with a return to near baseline levels 24 hours postexercise. The male participants showed higher values of hs-cTnT at baseline and postexercise. All groups had similar NT-proBNP responses to acute exercise and recovery. One swimmer exceeded the upper reference limit for NT-proBNP. CONCLUSIONS: An exercise-associated increase in hs-cTnT and NT-proBNP occurred in response to a 60-minute maximal swimming test that was independent of pubertal status/adolescent vs adults. The present data also suggests that baseline and postexercise hs-cTnT values are higher in male compared with female, with no sex differences in NT-proBNP values.

Effects of Adolescent Sport Practice on Health Outcomes of Adult Amateur Endurance Cyclists: Adulthood Is Not Too Late to Start.

BACKGROUND: We investigated the effects of adolescent sport practice on the training, performance, and health outcomes of adult amateur endurance cyclists and compared health outcomes of 3 adult groups: amateur endurance cyclists who practiced sports during adolescence, amateur endurance cyclists who did not practice sports during adolescence, and inactive individuals. METHODS: In 859 (751 men and 108 women) adult cyclists and 718 inactive subjects (307 men and 411 women), we examined adolescent sport practice, current training status, quality of life, quality of sleep, anxiety and depression, and cardiometabolic risk: body mass index, physical activity, physical fitness, adherence to Mediterranean diet, and alcohol and tobacco consumption. RESULTS: Independent of gender, no significant differences in training, performance, or health outcomes were observed between amateur endurance cyclists who practiced sports during adolescence and those who did not. Independent of gender, cyclists reported significantly better health outcomes than inactive individuals in all variables, except depression. CONCLUSIONS: Training, performance, and health outcomes did not differ between adult amateur endurance cyclists who practiced sports during adolescence and those who did not, but their health outcomes were significantly improved compared with inactive individuals, except for depression.

Exercise addiction risk and health in male and female amateur endurance cyclists.

Background and aims To determine the relationship between the risk of exercise addiction (REA) and health status in amateur endurance cyclists. Methods In 859 (751 men and 108 women) cyclists and 718 inactive subjects (307 men and 411 women), we examined the REA (Exercise Addiction Inventory), training status (volume, frequency, experience, and performance), socioeconomic status, quality of life (QoL) (SF-12), quality of sleep (Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index), anxiety and depression (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale), and cardiometabolic risk: body mass index, physical activity (International Physical Activity Questionnaire), physical condition (International Fitness Scale), adherence to the Mediterranean diet (Mediterranean Diet Adherence Screener), alcohol and tobacco consumption. Results In total, 17% of the cyclists showed evidence of REA and 83% showed low REA. REA occurred independent of age, sex, training, and socioeconomic status (all ps > .05). Regardless of REA, the cyclists displayed a better physical QoL and a lower cardiometabolic risk than the inactive subjects (all ps < .05). The cyclists with REA displayed worse values of mental QoL, quality of sleep, and anxiety than cyclists with low REA (all ps < .05). The REA group had better values of mental QoL and anxiety and similar values of quality of sleep than the inactive subjects. The differences in mental QoL between the REA and low REA groups were significantly greater in women (p = .013). There was no Addiction × Sex interaction in the other analyzed variables. Conclusion Our results suggest that an increased prevalence of REA limits the benefits that amateur endurance cycling has on mental health and quality of sleep.

[Adherence to the Mediterranean diet in inactive adults, indoor cycling practitioners and amateur cyclists]. / Adherencia a la dieta mediterránea en adultos inactivos, practicantes de ciclo indoory ciclistas aficionados.

INTRODUCTION: There is limited information referred to the relationship between adherence to the Mediterranean Diet (AMD) and sports practice. OBJECTIVE: To determinate the association of cycling practice and cycling training volume with the AMD and the influence of the participation in a high-demand cyclist event on the AMD. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A first evaluation of AMD in 785 (84 women) amateur cyclists (volume: ≥ 7 hours/week), 514 (224 women) indoor cycling practitioners (volume: 2-6 hours/week) and 718 (411 women) inactive adults was conducted in May coinciding with the participation of cyclists in a cycling event. A subsample of 359 cyclists and 148 inactive subjects agreed to be retested in November, far from the cycling event date. The MEDAS-14 questionnaire was used to assess the AMD and a self-designed questionnaire was used to assess the volume of training. RESULTS: 40% of subjects showed high AMD. In both sexes, athletes showed higher AMD than inactive subjects, with the highest indexes for groups of cyclists (p < 0.001). The relationship between AMD and training volume was weak (men: r = 0.137, women: r = 0.173; p < 0.001). The AMD of cyclists decreased from May to November (p < 0.001) with no significant changes in inactive subjects (p = 0.535). CONCLUSIONS: Cycling is associated to higher values of AMD with a limited influence of training volume and transient positive effects of participation in a cycling endurance event.

Individual variability in cardiac biomarker release after 30 min of high-intensity rowing in elite and amateur athletes.

This study had two objectives: (i) to examine individual variation in the pattern of cardiac troponin I (cTnI) and N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) release in response to high-intensity rowing exercise, and (ii) to establish whether individual heterogeneity in biomarker appearance was influenced by athletic status (elite vs. amateur). We examined cTnI and NT-proBNP in 18 elite and 14 amateur rowers before and 5 min, 1, 3, 6, 12, and 24 h after a 30-min maximal rowing test. Compared with pre-exercise levels, peak postexercise cTnI (pre: 0.014 ± 0.030 µg·L(-1); peak post: 0.058 ± 0.091 µg·L(-1); p = 0.000) and NT-proBNP (pre: 15 ± 11 ng·L(-1); peak post: 31 ± 19 ng·L(-1); p = 0.000) were elevated. Substantial individual heterogeneity in peak and time-course data was noted for cTnI. Peak cTnI exceeded the upper reference limit (URL) in 9 elite and 3 amateur rowers. No rower exceeded the URL for NT-proBNP. Elite rowers had higher baseline (0.019 ± 0.038 vs. 0.008 ± 0.015 µg·L(-1); p = 0.003) and peak postexercise cTnI (0.080 ± 0.115 vs. 0.030 ± 0.029 µg·L(-1); p = 0.022) than amateur rowers, but the change with exercise was similar between groups. There were no significant differences in baseline and peak postexercise NT-proBNP between groups. In summary, marked individuality in the cTnI response to a short but high-intensity rowing bout was observed. Athletic status did not seem to affect the change in cardiac biomarkers in response to high-intensity exercise.

Impact of an endurance training program on exercise-induced cardiac biomarker release.

We evaluated the influence of a 14-wk endurance running program on the exercise-induced release of high-sensitivity cardiac troponin T (hs-cTnT) and NH2-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP). Fifty-eight untrained participants were randomized to supervised endurance exercise (14 wk, 3-4 days/wk, 120-240 min/wk, 65-85% of maximum heart rate) or a control group. At baseline and after the training program, hs-cTnT and NT-proBNP were assessed before and 5 min, 1 h, 3 h, 6 h, 12 h, and 24 h after a 60-min maximal running test. Before training, hs-cTnT was significantly elevated in both groups with acute exercise (P < 0.0001) with no between-group differences. There was considerable heterogeneity in peak hs-cTnT concentration with the upper reference limit exceeded in 71% of the exercise tests. After training, both baseline and postexercise hs-cTnT were significantly higher compared with pretraining and the response of the control group (P = 0.008). Acute exercise led to a small but significant increase in NT-proBNP, but this was not mediated by training (P = 0.121). In summary, a controlled endurance training intervention resulted in higher pre- and postexercise values of hs-cTnT with no changes in NT-proBNP.