AusPAnet Research

Source: National Heart Foundation of Australia

Date: 27-July-2018

Stirling and Edinburgh Universities study „The Daily Mile makes primary school children more active, less sedentary and improves their fitness and body composition: a quasi-experimental pilot study.“ as commentated by Hannah Tarrant, National Heart Foundation of Australia.

Physical inactivity is an increasing global concern. As physical activity behaviours in childhood predict engagement as an adult, it is important to consider ways of maximising physical activity participation in early years of life.

Results [of the experiment] demonstrated significant improvements in MVPA, sedentary time, fitness and body composition in the intervention group. For example, participants who completed the Daily Mile illustrated a relative increase of 9.1 minutes per day of MVPA (p = 0.027). Furthermore, sedentary time decreased by 18.2 minutes per day (p = 0.017). Regarding the shuttle run, there was a relative increase of 39.1 metres (p = 0.037), and skinfolds decreased by 1.4mm (p = 0.036). These results were present after adjusting for age, gender and socioeconomic confounders.

As physical inactivity and sedentary behaviour are growing global concerns, it is important to consider ways of supporting healthy behaviours at all stages of life. The current study quantitatively reaffirms anecdotal evidence of the effectiveness of The Daily Mile in improving the physical health of primary school aged children. It additionally supports the integration of sustainable and effective physical activity interventions (such as The Daily Mile) into policy, as a means of reducing inactivity among children. As such, the current research is of value to teachers, policy makers and public health professionals who can play a role in influencing the ways in which children engage in active living.

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Record number of obese primary school children

Source: Sky News

Date: 26-July-2018

The battle against obesity continues to be lost, with children increasingly likely to be obese before they start secondary school.

The number of children leaving primary school severely obese has hit record levels as the government battles to slash childhood obesity.

One in 25 pupils aged 10 and 11 is in the most obese category, up from one in 32 a decade ago, according to research by Public Health England.

The figures also reveal boys and girls from the most deprived backgrounds are more likely to be overweight or obese and that the health inequality is growing.

Dr Alison Tedstone, chief nutritionist with Public Health England, said: „We have over 22,000 children now at the end of their primary school severely obese ..“

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