Regular physical activity is important for promoting health and well-being; however, physical activity behaviors in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) have received little attention. We compared physical activity levels among 53 children with ASD and 58 typically developing children ages 3–11 years who participated in the Children's Activity and Meal Patterns Study (CHAMPS). After adjustment for age and sex the amount of time spent daily in moderate and vigorous activity (MVPA) was similar in children with ASD (50.0 minutes/day, and typically developing children 57.1 minutes/day). However, parents reported that children with ASD participated in significantly fewer types of physical activities than did typically developing children (6.9vs.9.6, p < .001) and spent less time annually participating in these activities compared to typically developing children (158 vs. 225 hr/yr, p < 0.0001) after adjusting for age and sex. Although both groups of children engaged in similar levels of moderate and vigorous activity (MVPA) as measured by accelerometry, children with ASD engaged in fewer physical activities and for less time according to parental report, suggesting that some of the activity in children with ASD is not captured by standard questionnaire-based measures.

Objective To assess whether parent training in behavioral intervention, combined with a 16-session nutrition and activity education program, would improve weight loss relative to nutrition and activity education alone in adolescents and young adults with Down syndrome. Study design 21 youth with Down syndrome aged 13-26 with a BMI ≥85th percentile were enrolled and randomized to a 6-month nutrition and activity education intervention (n=10) or to nutrition and activity education+behaviorial intervention (n=11), and followed for 6 months after the active intervention period (1-year follow-up). The primary outcome measure was body weight; secondary outcomes included percentage body fat (%fat) by bioelectric impedance; intake of fruits, vegetables, and energy-dense low-nutrient snack food (treats) by 3-day food record; and moderate/vigorous physical activity by accelerometry. Results At 6 months, mean body weight in the nutrition and activity education+behaviorial intervention group was 3.2kg lower than in the nutrition and activity education group (95%CI: 1.0, 5.5, p=0.005). Mean group differences were sustained at 1 year (3.6kg 95%CI: 1.4, 5.9, p=0.002). At 6 months, moderate/vigorous physical activity time averaged 18 minutes/day more in nutrition and activity education+behaviorial intervention than at baseline (p=0.01); in nutrition and activity education, moderate/vigorous physical activity declined by 7 minutes/day (p=0.30); these changes were largely maintained at 1 year, but were not statistically significant. Vegetable intake in nutrition and activity education+behaviorial intervention exceeded intake in nutrition and activity education by a mean of 1.6 servings at 1 year (p=0.009), but not at 6 months. No group differences were observed for %fat or consumption of fruits or treats. Conclusions Parent-supported behavioral intervention appears to be a successful adjunct to a 6-month nutrition education intervention in achieving weight loss in youth with Down syndrome.

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Time spent in sedentary behavior is largely due to time spent engaged with electronic screen media. Little is known about the extent to which sedentary behaviors for children with autism spectrum disorder differ from typically developing children. We used parental report to assess and compare time spent in sedentary behaviors for 53 children with autism spectrum disorder and 58 typically developing children aged 3-11 years. We also determined how sedentary behavior was related to child weight status (body mass index z-score). Overall, children with autism spectrum disorder spent an hour more in sedentary behaviors on weekdays compared to typically developing children (5.2 vs 4.2 h, p = 0.03), and most of this difference was due to screen time. The age- and sex-adjusted estimate of weekday total daily screen time was 1.6 h (typically developing) compared to 2.5 h (autism spectrum disorder, p = 0.004 for difference). A significant relationship between BMI z-score and total sedentary behavior time on weekend days was observed among young children with ASD, but not among TD children. The modest association between weekend sedentary behaviour time and BMI z-score among children with ASD suggests that sedentary behaiour is linked to relative weight status in these children. Further research is needed to confirm these findings and identify causal pathways

Despite their limitations, the use of HCES data constitutes a generally unexploited opportunity to address the food consumption information gap by using survey data that most countries are already routinely collecting.