Relationship between Anthropometry and Motor Abilities at Pre-School Age

Abstract

Objective: Little is known to date about the relationship between poor motor abilities and overweight or obese pre-school children. Thus, this study examined the association between motor abilities and weight status in 1,228 kindergarten children (45.8% female). Method: Anthropometric data were assessed; age 4.7 ± 1.0 years; height 108.6 ± 8.0 cm; weight 19.1 ± 3.6 kg; BMI 16.1 ± 1.5 kg/m². The modified Karlsruher Motor Ability Screening Test was carried out to determine the motor abilities of speed strength, muscular endurance, coordination, flexibility, and speed. Results: Based on the German BMI reference values, 3.5% of the children were obese, 9.6% overweight, 83.4% normal weight, and 3.5% underweight. During various test tasks, below-average motor abilities were discovered in 44.0–47.3%. In all age groups, overweight and obese children did not differ from their normal and underweight counterparts; except for underweight children which fared worse in flexibility. Conclusion: In contrast to former studies with first graders, overweight or obese pre-school children did not possess worse motor abilities than normal weight children. However, the high number of overweight children and motor deficits suggests that preventive measures should start at this early age.

Association between Body Composition and Motor Performance in Preschool Children

“…However, these results were inconclusive, and differences between groups were generally based on BMI. Some of these studies showed that obese children were better in some tasks, such as throwing performance [40,41] and static balance [42]. Another study found a different impact of BMI on fine and gross motor skills [43]: only the gross motor skills were inversely related to BMI.…”

Age of Achievement of Gross Motor Milestones in Infancy and Adiposity at Age 3 Years

“…Obesity has been linked to lower levels of fitness and motor skills in older children both cross-sectionally [34–38] and longitudinally [31, 39]. Obesity in infancy may delay achievement of gross motor milestones [31, 39, 40] and conversely, infants who attain motor milestones at later ages may be less physically active later in childhood [31]. These infants may prevent development of excess adiposity by building more muscle mass, expending more calories, and improving cardiovascular function.…”

Impact of Depression on Diabetes mellitus

“…In a second pediatric study, de Toia (Germany) et al [2] examined the relationship between motor abilities and body weight in 1,228 kindergarten children. In school-aged overweight and obese children motor abilities have been shown to be reduced; however, little is known about preschoolers.…”

“…Depression is common in patients with diabetes mellitus [2]. The prevalence of any depression (major or minor forms) is significantly higher in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) than in those without diabetes (17.6 vs. 9.8%) [3].…”