ABC Grow Healthy Practices and Obesity-Related Health Behaviours in Family Child Care Homes in South Carolina.

Background: Many states throughout the United States have introduced Quality Rating and Improvement Systems (QRIS) to address childhood obesity in preschool-age children, but few have examined the impact of these standards in Family Child Care Homes (FCCHs). In South Carolina, the ABC Grow Healthy Practices are specific QRIS items that include diet, physical activity and sleep practices.

Methods: The purposes of this cross-sectional study are to (1) describe physical activity levels, sleep duration and diet quality of children attending FCCHs in South Carolina and (2) compare physical activity levels, sleep duration and diet quality between children attending FCCHs that were enrolled versus not enrolled in the ABC programme.

Longitudinal Associations Between Physical Activity and Sleep Duration in Infants and Toddlers.

Purpose: This study examined longitudinal associations between average physical activity (PA) levels in children and their sleep duration, and whether changes in PA levels are associated with their sleep duration.

Methods: Data were collected on 108 children at 4 time points: when children were 6, 12, 18, and 24 months of age (44% female, 50% Non-Hispanic White). PA was assessed using accelerometry.

The Association Between Meeting Physical Activity Guidelines and Mental Health Among High-School Students in the United States During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Purpose: Physical activity (PA) is associated with mental health outcomes in high-school students, yet many students do not meet the recommended PA levels. Furthermore, both PA levels and mental health were severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The aim of this study was to assess whether the number of PA recommendations students met during the COVID-19 pandemic was associated with their self-reported mental health (including their experiences with stress, anxiety, and depression) during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Children's physical activity in family child care homes: Influence of quality status, environment and policy features, and child characteristics.

Background: About half of preschool-age children are not meeting recommendations of 15 min/h of physical activity (PA), and nearly one out of seven children between the ages of 2-5 years are living with obesity. Furthermore, children attending family child care homes (FCCHs), compared with larger child care centers, engage in lower levels of PA and appear to be at a higher risk of obesity. Therefore, examining PA and multi-level factors that influence PA in children who attend FCCHs is essential.

Determinants of Change in Physical Activity in Children during the Transition from Elementary to High School.

Introduction: Effective public health interventions targeting factors that influence physical activity are urgently needed to reduce the age-related decline in physical activity in youth. The purpose of this study was to identify associations between physical activity and a set of potential influences on physical activity in children as they transition from elementary to high school.

Methods: Participants were 951 children from South Carolina school districts who completed outcome and independent variable measures on at least two time points from the 5th to 11th grades in 2010-2017.