The cross-sectional and longitudinal associations of parental practices and environmental factors with 24h movement behaviours among school-aged Asian children

• Published in: The international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity 2024-03, Vol.21 (1)
• Main Authors: Padmapriya, Natarajan, Fogel, Anna, Tan, Sarah Yi Xuan, Goh, Claire Marie Jie Lin, Tan, Shuen Lin, Chia, Airu, Chu, Anne Hin Yee, Chong, Yap Seng, Tan, Kok Hian, Chan, Shiao-Yng, Yap, Fabian, Godfrey, Keith, Lee, Yung Seng, Eriksson, Johan, Tan, Chuen Seng, Bernard, Jonathan Y., Müller-Riemenschneider, Falk
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Human health and pathology; Life Sciences; Pediatrics; Santé publique et épidémiologie
• ISSN: 1479-5868; 1479-5868
• DOI: 10.1186/s12966-024-01574-x

Abstract Background Parental practices and neighbourhood environmental factors may influence children’s movement behaviours. We aimed to investigate the cross-sectional and prospective associations of parental practices and neighbourhood environmental factors with accelerometer-measured 24-hour movement behaviours (24 h-MBs) among school-aged children in Singapore. Methods The Growing Up in Singapore Towards healthy Outcomes (GUSTO) study collected information on dimensions of parental practices and neighbourhood environment at age 5.5 years. Confirmatory factor analyses were performed to generate latent variables and used to compute overall parental practices [involvement in PA + support for PA + control of screen viewing context] and environmental scores [facilities for active play + active mobility facilitators + barriers*-1]. Children wore an accelerometer on their non-dominant wrist for seven consecutive days at ages 5.5 and 8 years. The R-package GGIR 2.6 was used to derive moderate-to-vigorous-intensity physical activity (MVPA), light-intensity physical activity (LPA), inactivity, and total-sleep (napping+night sleep) minutes per day. Associations were determined using compositional data analysis with multivariate linear regression models, taking into account potential confounders. Results Among 425 children (48% girls, 59% Chinese), higher parental involvement in PA, parental support for PA and overall parental practices were associated with 24 h-MBs at ages 5.5 and 8 years, specifically with greater time spent in MVPA and less time being inactive relative to the remaining movement behaviours. The corresponding mean changes in the overall 24 h-MB for increasing parental practices from lowest to highest scores (− 2 to + 2 z-scores) indicated potential increases of up to 15-minutes in MVPA, 20-minutes in LPA, 5-minutes in sleep duration, and a reduction of 40-minutes in inactivity at age 5.5 years. At age 8 years, this could translate to approximately 15-minutes more of MVPA, 20-minutes more of LPA, a 20-minute reduction in sleep duration, and a 20-minute reduction in inactivity. Parental control of screen viewing contexts and neighbourhood environmental factors were not associated with 24 h-MBs. Conclusions Parental practices but not environmental factors were associated with higher MVPA and lower inactivity among Singaporean children, even at a later age. Further research may provide insights that support development of targeted public health strat