Cohort Profile Update: The Motorik-Modul (MoMo) Longitudinal Study-physical fitness and physical activity as determinants of health development in German children and adolescents

Active school transport routines during school transitions: Socio-structural predictors of changes from childhood into early adulthood

The purpose of this study is to investigate socio-structural predictors of active school transport (AST) change and to explore the stability and changes of transport modes during school transitions and into early adulthood in Germany. School transport mode, urbanicity level, socioeconomic status, and migration background were assessed in 624 children (8.9 ± 1.1 years, 51% female) and 444 adolescents (14.9 ± 1.7 years, 48% female) which were followed up longitudinally six years later. The results of multinomial logistic regressions and transition probability calculations indicated that residing outside of rural areas at baseline and follow-up predicts retaining or switching to AST in adolescence. Similarly, higher socioeconomic status at baseline predicted retaining or switching to AST in early adulthood. This research suggests that transition periods are crucial understanding AST behavior and may provide new opportunities for tailored AST promotion programs for different age groups.

Family predictors of physical activity change during the COVID-19 lockdown in preschool children in Germany

The COVID-19 pandemic is associated with crucial changes in children's daily life including their physical activity (PA) and screen time (ST). Among preschool children, the family represents an important factor for sufficient PA levels by being the gatekeeper for PA. Thus, the aim of this study was to investigate the influence of the family environment, specifically SES, parental support, and having siblings on COVID-19-related changes of PA and ST behavior in 317 (170 boys, 147 girls) German preschool children using longitudinal data. Our results indicate a decline in total amount of sports-related PA, an increase in outdoor play, as well as an increase in leisure ST in preschool children. The changes in total amount of PA differed between children with different levels of parental support as well as in dependence on having siblings. Furthermore, levels of outdoor play and ST in preschool children were influenced by environmental factors like having access to their own garden. We conclude that the family environment (parental support as well as physical environment) is highly relevant for PA and ST levels in preschool children. To provide every child with PA opportunities during potential future lockdowns, restriction policies should be adapted and parents need sophisticated information about the importance of their support and thus the PA levels of their children.

A Study on the Psychometric Properties of the Short Version of the Physical Activity Enjoyment Scale in an Adult Population

A new measure of the short form of the Physical Activity Enjoyment Scale (PACES-S), including four items, has been developed that focuses on the subjective experience of enjoyment. As validation has so far only been conducted in a youth population, the purpose of the present article was to test the psychometric properties of the measure in an adult population in three studies. In the first study (n = 1017) the results supported the unidimensional structure of the instrument (χ² = 10.0; df = 2; p < 0.01; CFI = 0.992; RMSEA = 0.063), revealed a satisfactory level of internal consistency (ω = 0.79), and showed that the measure is invariant across gender. The results on factorial validity and internal consistency were generally supported by the second study (n = 482), which additionally showed satisfactory test-retest reliability (r = 0.73). Finally, the third study (n = 1336) also supported the factorial validity and internal consistency of the measure and additionally showed a positive correlation with physical activity (r = 0.40), thus supporting the criterion-related validity of the measure. This more economical version of PACES seems to be particularly useful for large-scale studies.

The geospatial and conceptual configuration of the natural environment impacts the association with health outcomes and behavior in children and adolescents

Background

Studies investigating associations between natural environments and health outcomes or health behaviors in children and adolescents yielded heterogenous results to date. This may be the result of different geospatial configurations of the natural environment and confounding characteristics of the study population. Thus, we investigated how the relationship between the natural environment and mental health, muscular fitness, and physical activity varies depending on the geospatial configuration of nature and children’s and adolescents’ characteristics.

Methods

Data were derived from the German Motorik-Modul (MoMo) cohort study (2018–2020) that investigates physical activity, muscular fitness, and health parameters in a national sample of children and adolescents (N = 2843) between four and 17 years (M_age = 10.46 ± 3.49 years; 48.3% girls). Mental health was assessed via questionnaire, muscular fitness via standing long jump, and physical activity with 7-day accelerometer measurement. Using geographic information systems, land cover, and land use data, three different nature definitions were applied. Both circular buffers (100–1000 m) and street-network buffers (1000–5000 m) were created for each of the nature definitions. Associations were explored with linear regression models, and interaction analysis was used to investigate how those relationships vary by gender, age, and socio-economic status.

Results

The relationship between the three outcomes and the natural environment varied considerably depending on the nature definition, buffer size, and buffer type, as well as socio-demographic characteristics. Specifically, when comparing youth with a high socio-economic status to those with a medium socio-economic status, smaller circular buffer distances were related to less physical activity, but larger street-network buffer distances were related to greater mental health problems. Distinct relationships also occurred for youth with low socio-economic status in those relationships, with the pattern being less clear.

Conclusions

For future health research studies that investigate the role of the natural environment, we argue for the development of an a-priori model that integrates both geospatial considerations (nature definition, buffer type, and buffer size) and conceptual considerations (health outcome/behavior, sample characteristics) based on potentially underlying mechanisms that link the natural environment and the health outcome or behavior under investigation to theoretically underpin the geospatial configuration of the natural environment.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12942-022-00309-0.

Children and adolescents do not compensate for physical activity but do compensate for sedentary behavior

Little is known about behavioral transfer and compensation within and between moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and sedentary behavior. Thus, taking a within-person perspective, this study investigated across 1 week whether (a) children and adolescents compensate for increased MVPA and sedentary behavior with less of the respective behavior the next day and (b) transfer and compensation occur between these behaviors within 1 day and across 2 days. We obtained data from 2676 participants (6–17 years) of the national Motorik-Modul (MoMo) study in Germany. Participants wore an ActiGraph accelerometer (Pensacola, FL, USA) for 7 days. We analyzed within- and between-day associations using hierarchical linear modeling. If youth engaged in 2 h more sedentary behavior than typical on any given day, they engaged in 37.20 min less MVPA the same day (B = −0.31, p < 0.001) as well as in 4.80 min more MVPA (B = 0.04, p < 0.001) and 7.20 min less sedentary behavior (B = −0.06, p < 0.001) the next day. If youth engaged in 1 h more MVPA than typical on any given day, they engaged in 97.80 min less sedentary behavior the same day (B = −1.63, p < 0.001) and in 5.40 min less sedentary behavior the next day (B = −0.09, p < 0.001). No association with next-day MVPA was observed. Our results indicate that children do not compensate for enhanced MVPA but transfer to less sedentary behavior, while more sedentary behavior is compensated with less sedentary behavior and more MVPA the next day. This provides essential information for the design of intervention studies to tackle physical inactivity and sedentary behavior.

Influence of socioeconomic variables on physical activity and screen time of children and adolescents during the COVID‑19 lockdown in Germany: the MoMo study

The COVID‑19 (coronavirus disease 2019) pandemic created a multitude of natural experiments about the change of human behavior in a widely unfamiliar situation. Besides physical and mental health, physical activity (PA) and people’s movement behaviors were of particular interest to researchers all over the world. In a recent study, we found that among youth in Germany, sports activity declined, whereas recreational screen time and habitual activity increased during the first COVID‑19 lockdown. In the present study, we analyze the influence of the socioeconomic status and the housing situation on the changes in PA behavior and recreational screen-time before and during the first COVID‑19 lockdown among children and adolescents living in Germany. We found an alignment of PA behavior among youth from families with different socioeconomic backgrounds during the first lockdown and identified the housing situation to be a meaningful predictor of the increase in habitual activity. We conclude that restriction policies, communities, and in the last instance parents need to enable access to nonorganized PA to all children and adolescents every day and especially during potential future lockdowns.

Dauerhaftes Sporttreiben im Sportverein und motorische Entwicklung: Ergebnisse der MoMo-Längsschnittstudie (2003–2017)

Bereits im Kindes- und Jugendalter gilt die motorische Leistungsfähigkeit als wichtiger Gesundheitsmarker. Auf Basis von Daten der Motorik Modul-Studie wird in diesem Artikel längsschnittlich über die Jahre 2003–2017 untersucht, inwieweit sich Sportvereinsmitglieder, die konstant im Sportverein aktiv waren, hinsichtlich ihrer motorischen Entwicklung von denjenigen unterscheiden, die nie im Sportverein aktiv waren. Es wurden Daten aus drei Messwellen untersucht: T1 (2003–2006), T2 (2009–2012) und T3 (2014–2017). Aus insgesamt N = 1092 Teilnehmenden, von denen über T1 bis T3 Daten zur Motorik vorlagen, wurden all diejenigen mit konstanter Mitgliedschaft und Nicht-Mitgliedschaft im Sportverein über drei Messwellen ausgewählt. Das sind 46 % der Gesamtstichprobe (N = 498). Von den N = 498 Teilnehmer*innen (Alter T1: 8,9 ± 3,8 Jahre, T2: 15,1 ± 3,9 Jahre, T3: 20,3 ± 4,0 Jahre) waren 15 % dauerhafte Sportvereinsmitglieder mit Wettkampfengagement, 53 % dauerhafte Sportvereinsmitglieder ohne Wettkampfengagement sowie 32 % dauerhaft Sportvereinsabstinente. Zur Ermittlung der motorischen Leistungsfähigkeit wurden konditionelle und koordinative Fähigkeiten anhand des MoMo-Testprofils erhoben (Kondition: Standweitsprung, Liegestütz, Fahrrad-Ausdauertest, Koordination: Seitliches Hin- und Herspringen, Einbeinstand, Balancieren rückwärts). Die Unterschiede in der Entwicklung wurden anhand von alters- und geschlechtsadjustierten Perzentilen mittels Varianzanalysen mit Messwiederholung berechnet, mit dem Sozialstatus als Kovariate. Innerhalb der Sportvereinsmitglieder waren Teilnehmende mit niedrigem Sozialstatus deutlich unterrepräsentiert. Insgesamt betrachtet, ist die Entwicklung der koordinativen und konditionellen Fähigkeiten bei Sportvereinsmitgliedern als signifikant besser zu beurteilen im Vergleich zu Sportvereinsabstinenten (Modell Koordination * Sportverein: df = 3,870 | F = 2,931 | p = 0,021 | ETA = 0,015 | f = 0,123; Modell Kondition * Sportverein: df = 4 | F = 3,794 | p = 0,005 | ETA = 0,048 | f = 0,225). Die Ergebnisse untermauern die Wichtigkeit der Sportvereine für die motorische Entwicklung von Kindern, Jugendlichen und jungen Erwachsenen in Deutschland.

A Short Version of the Physical Activity Enjoyment Scale: Development and Psychometric Properties

Objective: The purposes of this paper were to (a) develop a new short, theory-driven, version of the physical activity enjoyment scale (PACES-S) using content analysis; and (b) subsequently to measure the psychometric properties (construct validity, internal consistency, test–retest reliability, and concurrent validity) of the PACES-S for adolescents. Methods: Six experts used a four-point Likert scale to assess the content validity of each of the 16 items of the physical activity enjoyment scale according to a provided definition of physical activity enjoyment. Based on the results, exploratory factor analysis was used to analyze survey data from a longitudinal study of 182 individuals (Measure 1 of Study 1: 15.75 ± 3.39 yrs; 56.6% boys, 43.4% girls), and confirmatory factor analysis (Measure 2 of Study 1: 15.69 ± 3.44 yrs; 56.3% boys, 43.7% girls) was used to analyze the survey data from a cross-sectional study of 3219 individuals (Study 2; 15.99 ± 3.10 yrs; 47.8% boys, 52.2% girls) to assess the construct validity of the new measure. To assess the reliability, test–retest reliability was assessed in Study 1 and internal consistency in Study 1 and 2. For the concurrent validity, correlations with self-reported and device-based physical activity behavior were assessed in both studies. Results: Four out of sixteen items were selected for PACES-S. Exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analyses identified and supported its factorial validity (χ² = 53.62, df = 2, p < 0.001; RMSEA = 0.073; CFI = 0.99; RFI = 0.96; NFI = 0.99; TLI = 0.96; IFI = 0.99). Results showed good test–retest reliability (r = 0.76) and internal consistency (a = 0.82 to 0.88). Regarding concurrent validity, the results showed positive correlations with a physical activity questionnaire (Study 1: r = 0.36), with a physical activity diary (Study 1: r = 0.44), and with accelerometer-recorded data (Study 1: r = 0.32; Study 2: r = 0.21). Conclusions: The results indicate that PACES-S is a reliable and valid instrument that may be particularly useful to measure physical activity enjoyment in large-scale studies. It shows comparable measurement properties as the long version of PACES.

Population density predicts youth's physical activity changes during Covid-19 - Results from the MoMo study

Children in Germany showed positive physical activity changes during the first Covid-19 lockdown in April 2020, but it is unclear how the changes relate to population density, which we investigated in a longitudinal sample of 1711 youth (4–17 years). For each ten citizens more per km², less positive physical activity changes were observed. For example, a child living in an area with 100 citizens/km² increased daily life physical activity by 44.50 min/day, whereas a child living in an area with 3000 citizens/km² only engaged in an additional 9.70 min/day. Policymakers should ensure that youth in densely populated areas have access to physical activity opportunities during the pandemic.

Sedentary Behavior in Childhood, Lower Arterial Compliance and Decreased Endothelial Function-Cross Sectional Data From a German School Cohort

BACKGROUND

Endothelial function by flow-mediated dilatation assesses early markers of atherosclerotic progression. Greater amounts of physical activity and physical fitness in children are associated with cardiovascular health benefits. We aimed to explore factors, influencing endothelial function and arterial compliance in a cohort of healthy school children.

METHODS

The 94 participants (41 girls, 53 boys) in the study were young, healthy children from a German school cohort. Anthropometric data, body composition and blood pressure were assessed. Blood was drawn (8 h overnight fast), assessing total cholesterol, high density lipoprotein and low density lipoprotein and triglycerides. Endothelial function was diagnosed by flow-mediated dilatation with ultrasonography (ALOKA/Hitachi, Prosound alpha 6). Tracking gates were set on the intima in B-mode. The waveform of diameter changes over the cardiac cycle was displayed in real time using the FMD-mode of the eTRACKING system. Changes in arterial diameter at baseline, ischaemia and vasodilatation were measured. A symptom limited pulmonary exercise test on a bicycle ergometer was performed to test cardiorespiratory fitness. Physical activity was assessed using GT3x accelerometers (Actigraph, USA), over 4 days (including 1 week-end day), with a minimum wear-time duration of 10 h.

RESULTS

The median age was 12.2 years (11.8-12.8). Children were normal weight, blood lipid profiles (cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein, low-density lipoprotein, triglyceride) were in normal range. Baseline measurements during the diagnostics of endothelial function revealed higher arterial compliance of the brachial artery in boys. Boys' cardiorespiratory fitness was higher than compared to girls. Boys met the recommendations of 60 min moderate to vigorous activity, whereas girls were significantly less active and did not meet current recommendations. More time spent in sedentary activity was the main predictor for lower arterial compliance (adjusted for age and sex), accounting for 14% of the variance. No significant model revealed, analyzing the influencing factors such as anthropometric data, blood lipids, physical activity and fitness on endothelial function.

CONCLUSION

This is the first study on endothelial function in association to objectively measured physical activity and cardiorespiratory fitness in healthy school children in Germany. The study highlights the importance of reducing time spent being sedentary to maintain endothelial health.