Relationship between Parents’ Physical Activity Level and the Motor Development Level and BMI of Their Children

Abstract

All the variables that arise in family dynamics can have significant effects on the lives of children concerning their nutritional status and motor development. The objective of this study was to relate the PAL of parents to the level of motor development and the BMI of their children. A total of 198 subjects participated, with the age of the students ranging between 8 and 10 years. To measure the BMI, the norms for the nutritional evaluation of children and teenagers from 5 to 19 years were used; to identify the motor behaviors, the TGMD-2 Test was used; and to identify the level of physical activity of parents, the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) was used. For the analysis, the independent samples t-test and the non-parametric Mann–Whitney U test (Wilcoxon) were used, and for the correlational analysis, Spearman’s rho test was applied. This study found no significant correlation between the activity level of parents and nutritional status variables (p = 0.162), or between the PAL variables of parents and the motor development of their children (p = 0.738). A parent’s level of physical activity does not have a direct relationship with the nutritional status or the motor development of their children.

Effects of Structured and Unstructured Physical Activity on Gross Motor Skills in Preschool Students to Promote Sustainability in the Physical Education Classroom

“…Basic motor skills are the fundamental structure upon which more complex motor responses are built, and the acquisition of mature movement patterns allows children to better interact with their environment [20,21]. Locomotion skills, such as walking, running, jumping, dodging, and balance skills, and manipulative skills, such as catching, throwing, kicking, propelling, and spinning, directly influence adherence to physical activity [22].…”

Relationship Between Quality of Life and Level of Physical Activity and Family Well-Being

“…Researchers note that promoting family physical activity is important for encouraging healthy habits in children. The results obtained in the study (Paez et al, 2022) show that children of parents with a low level of physical activity often have excess body weight, disharmonious physical development, and low physical fitness. Therefore, it is important to encourage parents and children to participate in health-enhancing and recreational physical activities together.…”

Development of Basic Motor Skills from 3 to 10 Years of Age: Comparison by Sex and Age Range in Chilean Children

“…Regarding the level of motor development in the children, the findings indicate that the scores are lower for locomotion, manipulation, and general motor development skills, where most of the children are in the very poor, poor, and low-average categories [ 3 , 21 ]. These results are related to the analysis of the studies of other research works, such as those presented by Ancheta-Arrabal [ 12 ] where decreased results in locomotion, manipulation and total motor development tests were also reported, which indicate that there are previous studies that used the TGMD-2.…”

“…These fundamental movement skills are strongly related to childhood development, a stage that has been recognized as a fundamental pillar for the development of social, motor, and cognitive skills. Studies also argue that this stage is critical for human development and learning [ 10 , 11 , 12 ], as fundamental movement skills play an essential role, since they represent the basic functional unit of movements that are more complex [ 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 ] and that favor the acquisition of mature movement patterns [ 22 , 23 ]. Their nature is mainly ontogenetic, and they are influenced by dynamic interactions with the environment [ 19 , 23 ] in which biological, psychosocial, and environmental factors have an influence [ 1 , 13 , 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 ].…”

“…It is likely that these sex-specific differences in the competence of fundamental movement skills account for the influence of environmental and socio-cultural factors, as well as the level of family support and stimulation received. Considering these differences, there is evidence of low levels of competence in this age group, in which boys and girls do not reach mature stages in fundamental movement skills, as well as indicating that motor competence remains low at the age of 6 to 10 years [ 17 , 21 ].…”