The prevalence of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) has been increasing in recent decades, with estimates reaching 2% of the world's population. In addition to the disorder's core characteristics, such as difficulties in socialization and communication, delays in motor development and low adherence to physical activity are also observed. Therefore, the objective of this study was to analyze the level of physical activity and motor coordination in children and adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder. This is an observational, quantitative, and associative cross-sectional study conducted with 26 participants, aged 8 to 13 years, with Autism Spectrum Disorder, of both sexes and residing in the city of Iguatu/CE, who were selected by non-probabilistic invitation sampling. Sociodemographic and anamnesis questionnaires, the PAQ-C/A for physical activity level, and the KTK for motor coordination level were used. Statistical analysis was performed using JASP software, employing descriptive tests, chi-square and independent t-tests, with a significance level of α<0.05. The results showed low levels of physical activity and significant deficits in motor coordination, confirming the association between physical inactivity and motor impairments. It is concluded that regular physical activity is essential to minimize motor delays resulting from the disorder, promoting a better quality of life for these children and adolescents with ASD. Received: 2026/01/23 Reformulated: 2026/04/06 Accepted: 2026/04/09

BACKGROUND:Public open spaces (POS) can promote physical activity (PA) in children, but evidence of their role in vulnerable contexts remains limited. This study examines how POS characteristics (distance, quality, and parental perception) influence PA among preschoolers in low-income neighborhoods. METHODS:This cross-sectional study was conducted in public preschools in peripheral neighborhoods of a capital city in Northeastern Brazil. Moderate to vigorous PA (MVPA) and total PA (TPA) of 128 preschoolers aged 3-5 (56.9% male) were measured using accelerometry. POS accessibility and quality were assessed using the Physical Activity Resource Assessment and Geographic Information Systems. Parental perceptions of the neighborhood and sociodemographic data were collected through interviews. Binary (for MVPA) and ordinal (for TPA) logistic regressions tested associations, adjusting for sex, age, maternal education, and income (P < .05). RESULTS:Preschoolers' mean MVPA time was 67.6 (20.0) and TPA time was 296.6 (52.4). A greater Euclidean distance from home to the POS was associated with greater odds of meeting MVPA recommendations (odds ratio [OR] = 6.34; P < .01). Greater walking distance (OR = 2.23; P = .02), higher POS quality (OR = 1.05; P < .01), and nighttime safety (OR = 0.39; P = .02) significantly predicted TPA levels. CONCLUSION:In socially vulnerable environments, POS distance and quality play differentiated roles in preschoolers' PA. Although a greater distance may encourage active travel, the quality and safety of POS remain critical to PA. Therefore, equitable urban planning is necessary to optimize POS resources for preschoolers in vulnerable communities.

The first few years of life are crucial for establishing adequate sleep duration and boosting the development of the prefrontal cortex, the brain's basis for executive functions (EF). This study aimed to analyse the association between sleep duration and EF in preschoolers. This study included 83 preschool children (50.6% boys, mean age 53.5 +/- 8.1 months). Physical activity (PE) was assessed using the Go/No-Go paradigm from the Early Tool Box battery. For analyses, the Go inverse efficiency (IE), computed by reaction time/Go accuracy, and the No-Go accuracy were considered. Sleep duration, sex, and age data were collected through a face-to-face interview with children's parents. To assess the associations between sleep duration and EF, considering sex and age as covariates, a structural equation model was performed using multivariate linear regression analyses. The results showed a negative association was observed between sleep duration and IE (beta = -0.264; p = 0.013). In this way, longer sleep in preschoolers predicted the IE. The model explained 8.4% of the variability in the IE and 17.8% of the variability in No-Go accuracy. These results suggest that improvements in preschoolers' EF may be linked to sleep duration, especially for skills related to information processing and maintenance of attention.

Healthy habits during early childhood are essential for a healthy adolescence and adulthood. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of children who met the 24-h movement behavior (physical activity [PA], sedentary behavior, and sleep) guidelines was low worldwide. Despite a lack of evidence, the restriction measures imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic are claimed to have further reduced the number, especially among preschoolers. Thus, this study was designed to compare the time spent on movement behaviors before and during the COVID-19 pandemic in low-income preschoolers from the Northeast Region of Brazil. Forty mothers provided data on their preschoolers’ sleep, sedentary behavior, and outdoor and indoor PA. To compare indoor and outdoor PA, sleep duration, and sedentary time during the weekdays and weekends, before and during the pandemic, generalized estimation equations were used. During the weekdays, a significant increase in sleep duration (553.7 vs. 627.0; p < 0.01) and sedentary times (225.0 vs. 409.5; p < 0.01) were observed. Further, an increase in the sedentary time during the weekend (319.5 vs. 406.5; p < 0.01) and the total time between the pre-pandemic and pandemic periods (249.0 vs. 409.5; p < 0.01) was observed. Our findings also unveiled that preschoolers were seven times more likely to be active outdoors for an hour or more before than during the pandemic (OR = 6.55; 95% CI = 2.07 – 20.73). In summary, the pandemic has altered preschoolers’ routines, leading to changes in their health behaviors over time.

Preschool children spend a large part of their day at school, and a large part of that time they spend in sedentary time. Although sedentary time negatively affects regions of the brain responsible for cognition, it is believed that the type of sedentary time performed can favor executive functions' performance. The present study explored the associations between sedentary time inside and outside preschools with executive function (EF) tasks in preschoolers. Seventy-three preschool children (60% girls; 55.0 +/- 9.1 months of age) were objectively assessed for sedentary time and physical activity (PA) using accelerometers (wGT3X). EF was evaluated using the Go/No-Go paradigm through the Early Years Toolbox - YET. Go's inverse efficiency (IE) and the No-Go accuracy were analyzed. To establish possible associations between EF and sedentary time, a structural equation model was conducted after adjustments for sex, age, body mass index, and moderate-to-vigorous PA. A significant and positive association between sedentary time on weekend days and IE (b = 0.61; p < .001) was observed. The general model explained 52% of the variation in IE and 2.1% in the accuracy of No-Go. The sedentary time on weekend days seems to be related to worse EI. This result emphasizes a context-dependent association between time being sedentary and preschoolers' EF. Further investigations should focus on exploring the type of sedentary behavior children are engaged in different contexts.

Canada, Australia, the World Health Organization and other countries have released 24-hour movement guidelines for the early years which integrate physical activity, sedentary behaviour, and sleep, focusing on supporting children to achieve a healthy 24-hour day. The guideline evidence synthesis, however, highlighted the dearth of high-quality evidence, particularly from large-scale studies. The Sleep and Activity Database for the Early Years (SADEY) project aims to assemble a large, pooled database of 24-hour movement behaviours and health indicators in young children (birth to 5.99 years), to advance knowledge in these areas. This paper describes the SADEY design and methods. Data sets were identified with > 100 children and device-measured (hip-worn ActiGraph accelerometers) physical activity and sedentary behaviour, parent-reported or device-measured sleep, and at least one health outcome: physical (BMI, waist circumference, blood pressure), social-emotional (Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire), cognitive (Early Years Toolbox), or motor development (Test of Gross Motor Development 2). Led by the University of Wollongong co-ordinating centre, the SADEY project collates the datasets to create a pooled database. To date, 13 studies from 7 countries have been included in the database. Ethics clearance and data sharing agreements have been secured for all studies and the SADEY 1.0 database is being assembled including ~ 8,000 participants. SADEY will be used to address questions of global importance to public health policy and practice, for example – Is the mix of movement behaviours across the 24-hour day associated with healthy development?, What is the optimal mix of these behaviours?, and; What factors can be targeted to support young children in achieving the optimal mix of 24-hour movement behaviours? Additionally, SADEY seeks to develop and disseminate protocols, develop capacity on the device-based measurement of movement behaviours, and seeks partnerships with stakeholders that promote knowledge translation on movement behaviours to support healthy development among young children.

This article aims to analyse the relationship between physical activity (PA) environment at schools, sex, age, and obesity in children, using a network approach. This is a cross-sectional study, with 1,200 children (8.1±1.0 years old) from eight public schools in the same municipality. Weight and height measurements were assessed to calculate the Body Mass Index (BMI) and classified as healthier weight or overweight. To assess the PA environment at school, a interview with the school´s manager was conducted. The association between the PA environment at school and obesity was tested using a Network Analysis performed on the Jasp software. Positive associations between BMI and Physical Education classes (0.847), physical education teacher (0.349), break duration (0.564), and indoor sports court (0.662) were observed. Negative associations were seen with sex (-0.212) age (-0.387), extracurricular PA (-0.492), and playground (-0.557). Additionally, the centrality indicators highlighted extracurricular PA (1.789) as the variables with the highest betweenness values, and BMI with the highest closeness (2.239) and strength (1.230) values. Extracurricular PA and the presence of playgrounds in school´s environment are associated with healthier weight in low-income children.

Naturalistic paradigms are being increasingly applied to investigate human brain function. Compared with resting-state and task-based paradigms in neuroimaging, naturalistic stimuli and situations can be potentially more readily translated to daily-life applications. Among neuroimaging modalities, functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) is particularly suitable for naturalistic investigations and applications. However, specific and tailored statistical analysis to interrogate brain function using naturalistic fNIRS is warranted. Here, we describe an exploratory graph-centrality-based approach to investigating participants' spatiotemporal similarities from the fNIRS signal. We illustrate the usefulness of our approach in a sample of typically developing children (10 males and 9 females; mean age of 5.2 years old; sd = 0.78) while they watch the Inscapes movie designed for neuroimaging acquisition. A node in the left dorsal prefrontal cortex presented similar responses across children, and those fNIRS responses were in line with scene transitions in the movie stimulus. Our results suggest the feasibility of applying centrality graph-based measures to investigate brain function in naturalistic fNIRS during development.

Background: This study analysed through the perspective of networks the association between physical activity (PA), sedentary behaviour (SB), and cardiovascular risk factors in overweight low-income schoolchildren from the perspective of complex systems. Methods: The sample consisted of 41 overweight children between 6 and 10 years old (56% girls). PA and SB were analysed by accelerometer, and the measures of cardiovascular factor risk were: anthropometric and hemodynamic measurements, body fat, lipid profile and glucose, cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF), left ventricular mass (LVM), and Sokolow–Lyon. Network analysis with Bootstrap-1000 was performed to analyse the association between PA, SB and the cardiovascular risk factors. Results: Moderate-to-vigorous PA was positive related to waist circumference (WC; 0.499), HDL-C (0.307), and CRF (0.276), and negatively associated with BMI (−0.251) and Fat (−0.341). For SB, positive associations were seen with WC (0.326), CRF (0.296), LVM (0.250) and Sokolow (0.215). In addition, the centrality indicators highlighted WC as the most important variable in the network. Conclusion: Interventions that aim to mitigate the harmful effects of obesity on cardiovascular risk factors in overweight children should consider WC as an important variable in the system.

Analyzing the effects of interventions from a theoretical and statistical perspective that allows understanding these dynamic relationships of obesity etiology can be a more efficient and innovative way of understanding the phenomenon's complexity. Thus, we aimed to analyze the pattern of cardiovascular risk factors between-participants, and the effects within-participants of a multidisciplinary intervention on cardiovascular risk factors in overweight children. This is a randomized clinical trial, and 41 participated in this study. A multicomponent intervention (physical activities, nutritional and psychological counseling) was performed for 10 weeks. Anthropometric and hemodynamics measurements, lipid and glucose profile, cardiorespiratory fitness, and left ventricular mass were evaluated. A network analysis was done. Considering patterns in the network at baseline, WC, WHR, BMI, and Fat were the main variables for cardiovascular risks. Group was the most critical variable in the within-participant network. Participating in a multicomponent intervention and decreasing body fat promoted beneficial cardiovascular factors.

Objective: to analyse the relationship between physical activity (PA) environment at schools and obesity in children, the light of complex systems. Methods: this is a cross sectional study involved 1.200 children (8.1 ± 1.0 years old and 50% boys) from eight public schools from socially vulnerable neighbourhoods of Petrolina, Brazil. Weight and height measurements were assessed to calculate the Body Mass Index (BMI) and classified as normal weight and overweight. To assess the PA environment at the school, a questionnaire about the structural and organizational environment of the school was applied through a face-to-face interview with the school´s manager was conducted. The association between the PA environment at school and obesity was tested using a Machine Learning technique (Network Analysis) performed on the Jasp software. Results: positive associations between BMI and Physical Education classes (0.847), physical education teacher (0.349), break duration (0.564) and indoor sports court (0.662) were observed. Negative associations were seen with sex (-0.212) age (- 0.387), extracurricular PA (-0.492) and playground (-0.557). Additionally, the centrality indicators highlighted extracurricular PA (1.789) as the variables with the highest betweenness values, and BMI with the highest closeness (2.239) and strength (1.230) values. Conclusion: Extracurricular PA and the presence of playgrounds at school´s environment are associated with a healthier weight status low-income children.

The development of cardiorespiratory fitness in preschool children is important in preventing obesity and the onset of chronic degenerative diseases in childhood and throughout life.Current studies emphasize the importance of regular practice of physical activity to improve cardiorespiratory fitness, however few studies have sought to observe changes in cardiorespiratory condition before and after intervention with physical activity in preschool children.The objective of this study was to evaluate the cardiorespiratory fitness of the participants after an intervention period with structured physical activity.Longitudinal observational study carried out at Centro Universitário de João Pessoa -Unipê, with children aged 4.3±1.2years participating in an intervention with physical activity lasting 10 weeks, twice a week and 45 minutes/session.The children were evaluated for body composition (bioimpedance) and cardiorespiratory fitness test (ShuttleRun PREFECTIVE).The software used was SPSS 20.0.Data were compared inter-groups with Student's t tests and significance value of 0.05.There was no statistically significant difference in BMI, in Fat Mass (kg), in Vo 2máx and in the speed of the children evaluated in this period, however, there was an improvement in the performance of the children in the test, where the results showed significant differences in the total number of laps (p<0.019) and stage reached (p<0.033).

Behavioral, biological, and social correlates may be related to the association between executive function (EF) and physical activity (PA), when considering such variables as an integrated and non-linear system. Thus, the aim of the present study was to investigate the relationships between EF, PA and associated correlates in low-income preschoolers according to a network perspective. Thus, 142 preschoolers of both sexes, age 3-to-5-years-old (51% girls) were analyzed. Light, moderate and vigorous PA, cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF), body mass index, family income, preterm birth, presence of siblings, presence of other children at home and the child's primary caregiver were assessed. Our results showed that EF was positively associated with age (b = 0.47), child's primary caregivers (b = 0.37), moderate PA (b = 0.30) and CRF (b = 0.25). Negative associations were seen with preterm birth (b = -0.50), vigorous PA (b = -0.34), presence of other children at home (b = -0.25), and sex (b = -0.33). The network's centrality indicators highlighted preterm birth and moderate PA as the most important variables in the network. Future interventions aiming to increase low-income preschoolers' EF should focus on increasing moderate PA, with special attention to preterm children.

Abstract Background Studies that have analyzed the association between the different movement behaviors and fundamental movement skills (FMS), have considered it in an independent manner, disregarding the compositional nature of 24-hour movement behaviors (24h MB). The aim of this study was to investigate relationships between the 24h MB and FMS in low-income preschoolers. Methods Two hundred and four preschoolers of both sexes (4.5±0.8 years old; 101boys) provided objectively assessed physical activity (PA) and sedentary time (ST) data (Actigraph wGT3X), and FMS assessments (TGMD-2). Sleep duration (SD) was reported by parents through interview. Association of daily time composition of movement behaviors with FMS was explored using compositional data analysis (R Core Team, 3.6.1). Results Our data highlighted that no single movement behaviour significantly predicted locomotor, manipulative, or total motor competence. When data were considered as a 24h MB composition based on PA, ST and SD, adjusted for age, BMI and sex, the composition significantly predicted locomotor score (P > 0.0001; r2 = 0.31), manipulative score (P > 0.0001; r2 = 0.19) and total motor competence score (P > 0.0001; r2 = 0.35), respectively. Conclusion Our study suggests that the 24h MB composition is more important for adequate FMS then any individual, movement behavior. This represents an important finding, particularly for creating and optimizing interventions to benefit child health.

Objetivo: avaliar os efeitos de um programa de intervenção interdisciplinar de educação nutricional e prática de exercício físico sobre a composição corporal, perfil lipídico e conhecimento nutricional de escolares. Materiais e Métodos: ensaio clínico randomizado incluindo 33 escolares com excesso de peso (60,6% do sexo feminino; 8,6±1,0 anos; 39,3±7,0 kg; 133,3±7,4 cm; 22,0±2,8 kg/m2). Os participantes foram divididos em dois grupos, intervenção (n=14) e controle (n=19). O programa de intervenção foi composto por dez sessões de educação nutricional e 30 sessões de exercícios físicos, realizados com as crianças e seus pais durante dez semanas. As medidas antropométricas, níveis lipídicos, consumo alimentar e o escore de pontos no jogo digital foram avaliadas antes e após a intervenção. Resultados: O consumo energético no grupo de intervenção mostrou uma diminuição significativa (Δ=-503,40), em relação ao controle (Δ=-123,92) após a intervenção. Ao final do programa, foi observado aumento significativo para todas as variáveis do perfil lipídico das crianças do grupo controle (CT: Δ=24,58; HDL-c: Δ=4,7; LDL-c: Δ=15,48; e TG: Δ=38,26). Contudo, para os escolares do grupo intervenção houve apenas aumento significativo da HDL-c (Δ=14,7). Também se verificou que as crianças do grupo intervenção aumentaram o nível de conhecimento sobre alimentação saudável após intervenção, o que não aconteceu no grupo controle. Conclusão: A intervenção foi positiva para aumentar a HDL-c, diminuir o consumo energético, melhorar percentual de gordura e o conhecimento sobre alimentação saudável das crianças com excesso de peso.

The objective of this study is to analyze the association between combinations of adherence to movement behaviour recommendations and fundamental movement skills (FMS) in preschoolers. This is a cross-sectional study. Participants of the study were 212 preschool children (M = 3.97 years old; 51.4% male), who provided objectively assessed physical activity (PA) data (Actigraph wGT3X), and completed FMS assessments (TGMD-2). Sleep time and screen time were parent-reported through face-to-face interview. Associations between the combination of two or three movement behaviours and FMS were analyzed using structural equation modeling (Mplus; 8.0; p < 0.05). Positive and significant associations were found between adherence to screen + sleep recommendations and locomotor skills (β = 0.23; p = 0.027); and between adherence to PA + screen + sleep recommendations with object control skills (β = 0.28; p = 0.014). Negative and significant associations were found between screen + sleep with object control skills (β = − 0.28; p = 0.007). The adherence to the 24-h movement behaviour recommendations explained locomotor and object control skills variability by 5% and 7%, respectively. Conclusion: The adherence to the combined movement behaviour recommendations may be a more important influence on FMS in preschoolers compared to any single movement behaviour in isolation.

Este artigo tem por objetivo apresentar as recomendações de atividade física para gestantes e mulheres no pós-parto desenvolvidas para o Guia de Atividade Física para a População Brasileira. Para isso, utilizou-se uma abordagem de métodos mistos que incluiu quatro etapas: 1) levantamento das diretrizes internacionais mais recentes; 2) revisão narrativa de literatura sobre efeitos da prática de atividade física durante a gestação para a saúde da mulher e do bebê; 3) escuta com gestantes, mulheres no pós-parto, profissionais e pesquisadores; 4) consulta pública. As evidências sumarizadas suportam que a prática de atividade física durante a gestação e no período pós-parto é segura, traz benefícios à saúde da mãe e do bebê, e reduz os riscos de algumas complicações relacionadas à gestação. Gestantes devem ser incentivadas a realizar pelo menos 150 minutos por semana de atividade física de intensidade moderada. Gestantes com contraindicações devem procurar auxílio de profissionais qualificados. Em alguns casos, a prática de atividade física durante a gestação não é recomendada. Este documento servirá como ferramenta para nortear profissionais de saúde que atuam com gestantes e mulheres no pós-parto e irá orientar a população-alvo quanto a prática de atividade física.

BACKGROUND The relationship between moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and fundamental motor skill (FMS) is inconsistent in early childhood, due to its complex and nonlinear characteristics. This study aimed to analyze the nonlinear relationships between MVPA, FMS, body mass index (BMI), sex, and age in preschoolers. METHODS This cross-sectional study with preschoolers (n = 204; 4.0 [0.8] y old; 99 boys), provided objective physical activity data, FMS assessments, and BMI. The associations between MVPA, FMS, BMI, sex, and age were explored using the network analysis (RStudio and qgraph). RESULTS Boys were more motor competent than girls in all FMS skills, while girls were more active than boys during the weekend. Older children were less active than their younger peers during these days. MVPA is weak and differently related to each FMS, and the leap skill emerged with the highest betweenness and strength values in the network. CONCLUSIONS For the assessed preschoolers, when considering BMI, age, and sex, the relationships between MVPA and FMS are inconsistent, and leap emerged as the main variable. During early childhood, these variables are connected as part of a complex system in which each skill has a dynamic role within the emerging pattern.

Objective: evaluate the effects of an interdisciplinary intervention program of nutritional education and physical exercise on body composition, lipid profile and nutritional knowledge of schoolchildren. Materials and methods: randomized clinical trial including 33 overweight students (60.6% female; 8.6 +/- 1.0 years; 39.3 +/- 7.0 kg; 133.3 +/- 7.4 cm; 22, 0 +/- 2.8 kg / m(2)). Participants were divided into two groups, intervention (n=14) and control (n = 19). The intervention program consisted of ten nutritional education sessions and 30 physical exercise sessions, carried out with the children and their parents for ten weeks. Anthropometric measurements, lipid levels, food consumption and the score of points in the digital game were assessed before and after the intervention. Results: The energy consumption in the intervention group showed a significant decrease (Delta = -503.40), compared to the control (Delta=-123.92) after the intervention. At the end of the program, a significant increase was observed for all variables of the lipid profile of children in the control group (TC:Delta = 24.58; HDL-c:Delta = 4.7; LDL-c:Delta = 15.48; and TG:Delta=38.26). However, for students in the intervention group, there was only a significant increase in HDL-c (Delta = 14.7). It was also found that the children in the intervention group increased the level of knowledge about healthy eating after intervention, which did not happen in the control group. Conclusion: The intervention was positive to increase HDL-c, decrease energy consumption, improve the percentage of fat and the knowledge about healthy eating of overweight children.

This study aimed to determine the effects of a school-based multi-component intervention on accelerometer- measured physical activity (PA) and sedentary behavior (SB) in schoolchildren overweight. This is a randomized controlled study with overweight schoolchildren, allocated to experimental group (EG; n = 13; 7.6 ± 0.8 years; 42.9% boys) and control group (CG; n = 17; 8.2 ± 0.9 years; 26.7% boys). The EG was submitted to a 10-week school-based intervention, comprised of PA and psychological sessions (behavioral therapy), and nutritional guidance. The CG followed the daily routine of life. The time of PA and SB were measured using accelerometers used for seven days. To compare mean SB, moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and total physical activity (TPA), generalized estimation equations (GEE) were used. It was observed that the average time in MVPA and TPA increased significantly in EG at the weekend (+ 40.9 min / day, p < 0.001; and + 51.6 min/day, p = 0.035, respectively) and at full week (+ 62.9 min/day, p < 0.001; and + 225.0 9 min/day, p = 0.038, respectively). There was no significant difference in time spent in SB after the intervention in both groups. Thus, it was concluded that the proposed school-based multicomponent intervention was effective in increasing levels of MVPA and TPA in overweight schoolchildren. This finding can optimize future interventions to promote a healthy lifestyle for schoolchildren in the school environment.