Secular trends in muscular fitness from 1983 to 2014 among Slovenian children and adolescents

Abstract

Low physical fitness has been found to be associated with many chronic diseases and medical conditions. Knowledge of secular trends in physical fitness is important to initiate countermeasures for addressing negative trends. The aim of this study was to analyze secular trends in health‐related muscular fitness in Slovenian children and adolescents between 1983 and 2014. Data were collected as part of “The Analysis of Children's Development in Slovenia (ACDSi)” study in 1983, 1993/94, 2003/04, and 2013/14. Anthropometry (body weight, height, BMI, and triceps skinfold) and muscular fitness (standing long jump, bent‐arm hang, and sit‐ups 60 s test) of 18730 (9168 female) students from primary and secondary schools were recorded. The secular trend was analyzed considering anthropometry. The results showed that anthropometric measures had an increasing trend and overall muscular fitness had a decreasing trend. Leg muscle power decreased over the decades in all age groups (relative difference between −1.5% and −2.6%), being more pronounced in boys. Arm muscle strength decreased in two younger age groups (range −21.1% to −42.7%, 6–10, and 11–14 years), but not in the oldest group (15–19 years), where the increase occurred in both genders (0.4% to 9.3%). In terms of decades, the largest negative changes (−30.1%) occurred from 1993/94 to 2003/04 and the smallest changes (−4.2%) from 2003/04 to 2013/14. The overall trend in repetitive core strength surprisingly increased (1.1% to 18.3%). There is a need to promote healthy lifestyles, raise parental awareness and use all government resources to redirect the negative trend in physical fitness.

The Impact of COVID-19-Related Mitigation Measures on the Health and Fitness Status of Primary School Children in Austria: A Longitudinal Study with Data from 708 Children Measured before and during the Ongoing COVID-19 Pandemic

“…However, regardless of these multiple benefits, a secular trend of increasing body mass index (BMI) [ 7 , 15 ] has been observed in children and adolescents over many years. In the 1980s and 1990s, the increase in BMI was accompanied by a decline in physical fitness [ 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 ]. However, due to increasing awareness of the far-reaching problem of decreased cardiorespiratory endurance in children and the specific interventions taken to counteract this, cardiorespiratory endurance values in children and adolescents have remained relatively stable since the beginning of this millennium [ 17 , 19 , 23 ].…”

Increase in BMI and Negative Muscular Strength Trends in Adolescents in 1990 and 2020: Results from the Regional Observatory of Motor Development in Southern Italy

“…A further Slovenian study showed, however, a negative trend between the increase in anthropometric factors (especially BMI) and the decline in motor abilities, emphasizing a significant reduction in lower and upper limb strength levels, with peaks (in terms of involution) observed in the years 1993/1994-2003/2004 [37].…”

Силові Здібності: Оцінка Та Особливості Розвитку Хлопців Каратистів Молодшого Шкільного Віку

“…The tests were chosen depending on the subject matter and were included in the analysis according to the purpose of the study. The tasks performed during the examination of the children were assessed using quantitative indicators (Eurofit, 1993;Serhiienko, 2010;Đurić, Sember, Starc, Sorić, Kovač & Jurak, 2021).…”