Izzicupo Pascal, Di Blasio Andrea, Di Credico Andrea, Ghinassi Barbara, Capranica Laura, Napolitano Giorgio, Di Baldassarre Angela, Modestini Elisabetta, Di Pietro Mario
Department of Medicine and Aging Sciences, University "G. D'Annunzio" of Chieti-Pescara, Chieti, Italy.
Department of Movement, Human and Health Sciences, University of Rome Foro Italico, Rome, Italy.
Front Sports Act Living. 2021 Mar 25;3:624449. doi: 10.3389/fspor.2021.624449. eCollection 2021.
Childhood obesity is a major public health challenge. Summer camps for children with obesity represent an alternative setting to improve eating and physical activity habits. Here we evaluated if the participation in the camp improves objectively measured physical activity and sedentary behavior and whether there are differences between male and female participants. Twenty-eight children, 13 males and 15 females (body mass index >97° centile, weight excess >30%, Tanner stage I), agreed to participate in an 8-day camp. During the summer camp, children participated in sports-like games and outdoor activities for at least 3 h a day, and the school-camp staff also provided a theoretical nutritional learning plan. Accelerometry-derived physical activity was measured through the SenseWear Mini Armband during a week at home and during the camp experience. Before camping, the participants were far above the minimum daily values of moderate- to vigorous-intensity physical activity (MVPA) to be considered sufficiently active (≥60 min/day), but male participants were more active than females (MVPA: 186.2 ± 94.2, 111.0 ± 64.7; = 0.020). Male participants increased their MVPA (234.3 ± 114.8, = 0.020), whereas females not (111.9 ± 52.9, = 0.020). No difference emerged for the sedentary behavior either before or during the camp. This study suggests that participation in a summer camp for obese children can determine different responses in physical activity levels, depending on the sex of young participants. Thus, summer camps for obese children should put particular attention on female participants, besides reducing sedentary behavior in both males and females.
儿童肥胖是一项重大的公共卫生挑战。针对肥胖儿童的夏令营是改善饮食和身体活动习惯的另一种途径。在此，我们评估了参加夏令营是否能客观地改善身体活动和久坐行为，以及男女参与者之间是否存在差异。28名儿童（13名男性和15名女性，体重指数>第97百分位，超重>30%，坦纳第一期）同意参加为期8天的夏令营。在夏令营期间，孩子们每天至少参加3小时类似体育的游戏和户外活动，学校夏令营工作人员还提供了理论营养学习计划。通过SenseWear Mini臂带在在家一周和夏令营期间测量加速度计得出的身体活动情况。在参加夏令营之前，参与者的中度至剧烈强度身体活动（MVPA）远远高于被认为足够活跃的每日最低值（≥60分钟/天），但男性参与者比女性更活跃（MVPA：186.2±94.2，111.0±64.7；P = 0.020）。男性参与者的MVPA有所增加（234.3±114.8，P = 0.020），而女性则没有（111.9±52.9，P = 0.020）。在夏令营前后，久坐行为均无差异。这项研究表明，参加肥胖儿童夏令营可能会根据年轻参与者的性别在身体活动水平上产生不同反应。因此，除了减少男性和女性的久坐行为外，肥胖儿童夏令营应特别关注女性参与者。
