Article
Association between body mass index and functional fitness of 9- to 10-year-old Chilean children
Asociación entre índice de masa corporal y aptitud funcional de niños chilenos de 9 a 10 años
Registro en:
Am J Hum Biol. 2019;e23305
1042-0533
Autor
Maury-Sintjago, Eduard
Rodríguez-Fernández, Alejandra
Parra-Flores, Julio
Resumen
Objective: This study aimed to determine the association between body mass
index (BMI) and functional fitness (FF) in 9- to 10-year-old Chilean children.
Methods: This was an analytical and cross-sectional study with a probabilistic
sample consisting of 139 children of both sexes. Anthropometric measurements,
hemodynamic variables, physical activity (PAQ-C), and FF (measured by a 6-minute
walk test: 6MWT) were recorded. If the distance walked was <10th percentile, FF was
considered low. Means of variables between each group were compared by Student's
t test, and Pearson's test was used to determine correlations between variables. Multivariable analyses were performed to identify factors associated with FF with a level
of significance P < .05. All these analyses were performed with the STATA 15.0
program.
Results: It was clear boys walked a greater distance than girls (P = .006); overweight subjects had lower physical performance than normal-weight subjects
(P = .035). There was a significant correlation between weight (r = −0.511), height
(r = 0.502), BMI (r = −0.352), waist circumference (r = −0.310), neck circumference
(r = −0.204), and percentage fat mass (r = −0.310) for distance walked. Overweight
(OR 2.06; 95% CI 1.6-4.8), high percentage fat mass (OR 1.84; 95% CI 1.2-3.2), and
abdominal obesity (OR 1.15; 95% CI 1.1-1.7) were associated with significantly higher
odds of low FF.
Conclusion: Lower performance was exhibited in Chilean children for the 6MWT.
Overweight, fat mass, and abdominal obesity were associated with lower FF. This
study contributes empirical information to construct normality curves for the Chilean
child population.