To what extent do unhealthy behaviour indicators explain the neighbourhood deprivation gradient in overweight among 11-year-old English children?

The Influence of Adolescent Sport Participation on Body Mass Index Tracking and the Association between Body Mass Index and Self-Esteem over a Three-Year Period

This study aimed to (1) investigate gender-specific characteristics associated with low sport participation among UK adolescents, and (2) assess gender-specific BMI tracking, and gender-specific associations between BMI and self-esteem based on different levels of adolescent sport participation. Participants were 9046 (4523 female) UK adolescents. At 11- and 14 years self-esteem was self-reported and BMI was calculated from objectively measured height and weight. At 11- years sport participation was parent-reported. Gender-specific sport participation quartile cut-off values categorised boys and girls separately into four graded groups. Gender-specific χ² and independent samples t tests assessed differences in measured variables between the lowest (Q1) and highest (Q4) sport participation quartiles. Adjusted linear regression analyses examined BMI tracking and associations between BMI and self-esteem scores. Gender-specific analyses were conducted separately for sport participation quartiles. Compared to Q4 boys and girls, Q1 boys and girls were more likely to be non-White, low family income, have overweight/obesity at 11 years and report lower self-esteem at 11 years and 14 years. BMI at 11 years was positively associated with BMI at 14 years for boys and girls across sport participation quartiles. BMI at 11 years was inversely associated with self-esteem scores at 11 years for Q1 and Q2 boys, and Q1 and Q4 girls. BMI at 11 years was inversely associated with self-esteem scores at 14 years for Q1, Q3 and Q4 boys, and Q1, Q2, Q3 and Q4 girls. Gender and sport participation influence BMI tracking and the BMI and self-esteem association among adolescents.

Serious games for health promotion in adolescents - a systematic scoping review

Digital gaming has broad appeal globally, with a reported 2.7 billion gamers worldwide. There is significant interest in using games to enhance learning, with 'serious games' being included in classrooms to engage adolescents' learning across a range of domains. A systematic scoping review of serious games used for health promotion with adolescents was conducted to identify serious games, review the methods used to evaluate these games, and outline evidence available to support the efficacy of these games in improving knowledge, beliefs/attitudes and behaviours in the target groups. Player engagement/enjoyment was reported if assessed. A total of 21 studies were found to have met the inclusion criteria domains: 'healthy lifestyle' 'sexual health' and 'substance use'. A heterogenous approach across studies to game design and development, duration of game play, use of a control group and measurement of outcome(s) was observed. Game efficacy was difficult to assess due to broad generalisations and lack of consistent evaluation methods. Several studies demonstrate serious games can be engaging and pedagogically effective as a learning device and behaviour-change agent. Several studies, however, had less rigorous evaluation and lacked longer-term follow up. The ability for developers to demonstrate positive short- and long-term impacts of serious games with high-quality evidence is essential to the ongoing acceptance and use of these serious games as part of the school curriculum.

Economic and social deprivation predicts impulsive choice in children

Impulsivity is an individual difference in decision-making that is a risk factor for a number of health concerns including addiction and obesity. Although impulsivity has a large heritable component, the health concerns associated with impulsivity are not uniformly distributed across society. For example, people from poorer backgrounds are more likely to be overweight, and be dependent on tobacco or alcohol. This suggests that the environmental component of impulsivity might be related to economic circumstances and the availability of resources. This paper provides evidence that children aged 4 to 12 from the most deprived areas in England show greater impulsivity in the form of delay discounting than do children from the least deprived areas. The data are discussed with reference to scarcity-based models of decision-making and to public health inequalities.

Associations between socioeconomic position and young people's physical activity and sedentary behaviour in the UK: a scoping review

OBJECTIVE

To examine the evidence on the associations between socioeconomic position and young people's physical activity and sedentary behaviours in the UK.

DESIGN

Scoping review.

DATA SOURCES

PubMed, SCOPUS and Web of Science databases were searched for articles published up to and including January 2021.

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA FOR SELECTING STUDIES

Observational studies in children and adolescents (aged 5-18 years) from the UK that had assessed associations between at least one indicator of socioeconomic position and at least one outcome of physical activity and/or sedentary behaviour.

DATA EXTRACTION AND SYNTHESIS

Data were extracted by one reviewer and 20% were double checked. Indicators of socioeconomic position were tabulated with domains of physical activity and sedentary behaviour.

RESULTS

Fifty-seven publications were included in the review; 37 publications from 19 studies (k=23) of children and 21 publications from 15 studies (k=23) of adolescents. Most studies were cross-sectional. 63% of studies of children, and 40% of studies of adolescents assessed Index of Multiple Deprivation. Eighteen studies measured physical activity in children, 13 measured sedentary behaviour. Eleven studies of adolescents included a measure of physical activity, 10 included a measure of sedentary behaviour. Among children and adolescents, the association between socioeconomic position and measures of either physical activity or sedentary behaviour was highly variable depending on the measure of both socioeconomic position used and the behavioural outcome, with the exception of higher family affluence which was consistently associated with higher reported physical activity among adolescents.

CONCLUSION

Physical activity and sedentary behaviours of children and adolescents in the UK are complex and influenced by multiple indicators of socioeconomic position that are, in most cases, different across age stages, outcomes examined and measurement tools. Greater consistency in the use and measures of socioeconomic position as well as outcomes of behaviour are required for robust country-specific meta-analyses.

Associations between Neighborhood Deprivation Index, Parent Perceptions and Preschooler Lifestyle Behaviors

Parental perceptions and use of neighborhood facilities are important factors that are related to children’s dietary intake and physical activity. The aim of this study was to examine the association between neighborhood deprivation index, parents’ perceptions of their neighborhood environment, and healthy/unhealthy markers of child dietary intake, physical activity, and TV screen time. This cross-sectional study was conducted in Dublin, Ireland. The lifestyle behaviors among children and parental perceptions of their neighborhood environment were reported by the parents of 276 children aged 3–5 years by using parent-completed questionnaires. Deprivation index was assessed using the geographic information system (GIS). Data were analyzed using binary logistic regression, adjusting for socio-demographic confounders. In adjusted models, high deprivation index was associated with parental perception of the neighborhood as unsafe for walking and cycling due to crime (OR 1.59, 95% CI 1.04–2.43, p = 0.031) and children’s low engagement in structured physical activity (OR 0.35, 95% CI 0.17–0.72, p = 0.004). Parental perceptions of an unsafe neighborhood due to heavy traffic were negatively correlated with children’s active play (OR 0.73, 95% CI 0.55–0.95, p = 0.022). Children whose parents reported high satisfaction with the number of local sit-in and takeaway restaurants were 41% more likely to consume confectionary/sugar sweetened beverages (SSBs) weekly. In this age group, parents play an important role in children’s lifestyle behaviors; therefore, a better understanding of parents’ perceptions and their use of neighborhood facilities could contribute to creating a healthy environment for this age group.