Publications by authors named "Nicolas Aguilar-Farias"

Background: Global initiatives have been put in place to attain a thorough understanding of worldwide variations in physical activity (PA) among children and adolescents. Yet, there is limited knowledge about PA-related indicators, specifically for children and adolescents with disabilities (CAWD). To bridge this data gap, the Global Matrix of Para Report Cards (PRCs) of CAWD initiative was established to address the scarcity of information on PA for this population globally.

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This study aimed to evaluate the reliability, reproducibility, and feasibility of the Youth Activity Profile Questionnaire (YAP-SL) in the Chilean version (YAP-C) in a sample of children and adolescents. This cross-sectional study included 160 youth, 59 children (5-11 years old), and 101 adolescents (12-17 years old) from the city of Viña del Mar (Chile). The YAP-SL is a 15-item self-report instrument which was administered twice at an interval of 7 days apart.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study aimed to improve global surveillance of child and adolescent movement behaviors (like physical activity and screen time) by gathering expert opinions through a Delphi method involving 62 participants.
  • Experts ranked important items in categories like funding, capacity building, and methods, with a consensus on key priorities such as increased public funding and standard protocols for measures.
  • The findings highlighted common priorities across different income countries and initiatives, but there was no agreement on the use of private funding for surveillance.
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Purpose: To summarize the results of Chile's 2022 Report Card (RC) on physical activity (PA) for Children and Adolescents.

Methods: Chile's 2022 RC included ten core PA indicators common to the Global Matrix 4.0.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study examined how cognitive abilities (working memory, inhibitory control, and fluid reasoning) influence the relationship between physical fitness and academic success in adolescents aged 10-14.
  • It involved 1,296 participants, and measured fitness through a test battery while academic achievement was assessed across five subjects.
  • Findings revealed that cognitive domains fully mediated the fitness-academic performance link for Language and English, while showing partial mediation for other subjects, highlighting the importance of mental skills in educational outcomes.
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Article Synopsis
  • - Previous research suggests that Adenovirus-36 (HAdv-D36) is linked to increased fat growth and better blood sugar control, but its effects on childhood obesity remain unclear.
  • - A study involving 208 children aged 9-13 found a low prevalence of HAdv-D36 seropositivity (5.4%), with no evidence connecting the virus to obesity or lipid levels, despite lower insulin levels in infected children.
  • - The findings indicate that HAdv-D36 might reduce insulin secretion and resistance, but this study revealed no connection to obesity in the local child population, differing from prior studies.
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The development of motor competence is thought to be a crucial precursor to raising the trajectory of PA throughout a person's life. The objectives of this study are to determine motor competence and the daily time of moderate and vigorous physical activity of students in 5th and 6th grade elementary in Chile, and to establish whether there are differences in motor competence according to sex and compliance with physical activity recommendations. 368 schoolchildren ( = 11.

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Background: Physical inactivity is prevalent in childhood. Schools can be an ideal context to promote the regular practice of physical activity since children spend there a large part of the day. In this sense, an emerging and current trend is active breaks at school.

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Background: Guidelines recommend that adolescents should accumulate an average of 60 min per day of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA). However, using only this cut-off could hide important information. For instance, from a population-level point of view, increasing physical activity for those with no or low physical activity could provide more health benefits than increasing physical activity for those with intermediate levels.

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Physical inactivity is a major health concern, associated with the development of several non-communicable diseases and with an increased mortality rate. Therefore, promoting active lifestyles has become a crucial public health necessity for enhancing overall health and quality of life. The WHO guidelines for physical activity (PA) present valuable contributions in this respect; however, we believe that greater specificity should be added or complemented towards physical exercise (PE) testing, prescription and programming in future recommendations.

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Purpose: This study aimed to determine the test-retest reliability and concurrent validity of the International Physical Activity Questionnaire Short Form (IPAQ-SF) in Chilean adults.

Methods: A cross-sectional validation study was carried out on 161 adults aged between 35 and 65, selected from a population-based study in Temuco, Chile. IPAQ-SF was completed twice, seven days apart, to analyze the test-retest reliability with the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC).

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Background: Improving health of children and adolescents is crucial for their overall development. Therefore, it is essential to explore factors that may influence their health at both the public health and school system levels.

Objective: This study compares physical fitness components and waist-height-to-ratio (WHtR) in adolescents according to school uniforms, namely the traditional uniform (i.

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Background: Physical environment can influence well-being, quality of life and health and population health in several ways. Exposure to green spaces improves the physical and mental health of individuals. Chile has privileged conditions for outdoor activities that could benefit millions of people.

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Background: People with disabilities usually face barriers to regularly engaging in physical activities. Estimating physical activity patterns are necessary to elaborate policies and strategies to facilitate active lifestyles, considering the particular access difficulties experienced by this population.

Purpose: This study aimed (i) to describe the prevalence of physical activity levels and (ii) to examine the associations of physical activity levels with socio-demographic variables and type of disability in the 2020 Chilean National Physical Activity and Sports Habits in Populations with Disabilities (CNPASHPwD) survey during the coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) pandemic.

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Background: To estimate the prevalence of different physical activity (PA) domains and sitting time (ST), and to analyze the association with sociodemographic indicators.

Methods: Data from the most recent nationally representative survey from each of the South American countries, comprising 155,790 adults (18-64 y), were used. Data on leisure-time, transport, and occupational PA (all 3 domains as nonzero), total PA (≥150 min/wk), and ST (≥8 h/d) were assessed by specific questionnaires in each survey.

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Article Synopsis
  • Obesity in Latin America is rising rapidly, making it a significant public health issue, prompting countries to implement policies for better diet and exercise.
  • Recent studies show that market-based interventions like food taxes and marketing restrictions reduce unhealthy food consumption, while programs providing healthy foods help lower obesity rates.
  • Despite these efforts improving some health behaviors, obesity rates continue to climb, highlighting the need for ongoing strategies within a structural framework to combat the epidemic.
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This is an overview of the results from 14 countries or jurisdictions in a Global Matrix of Para Report Cards on physical activity (PA) of children and adolescents with disabilities. The methodology was based on the Active Healthy Kids Global Alliance's Global Matrix 4.0.

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Background: As a key factor for the prevention of childhood obesity, WHO recommends a specific balance of movement behaviours (ie, physical activity, sedentary behaviour, and sleep) across the 24-h day for children younger than 5 years. Substantial evidence underpins our understanding of the benefits for healthy growth and development; however, little is known about young children's experiences and perceptions, and whether context-specific factors that might influence movement behaviours differ across the globe.

Methods: Acknowledging children's agency as knowledgeable informants on matters affecting their lives, children aged 3-5 years from communities and preschools in urban and rural Australia, Chile, China, India, Morocco, and South Africa, were interviewed.

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Movement behaviors (physical activity, sedentary behavior, and sleep) have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. We report changes in and factors that influenced movement behaviors during COVID-19 among Latin American/Latino children aged 1 to 5 years in Chile, Mexico, and the USA. We conducted a cross-sectional study between April and August 2020.

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(1) Background: In this study, we aimed to determine differences in the levels of motor competence according to biological factors (sex, age and weight status) and sociocultural factors (socioeconomic level and belonging to an indigenous people or not) in students of the La Araucanía Region, Chile. (2) Methods: A total of 552 students in 5th and 6th grade were evaluated (49.6% girls; age M = 11.

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Article Synopsis
  • The Global Matrix 4.0 provides an extensive overview of physical activity levels among children and adolescents aged 5-17 worldwide, highlighting the disparities and influences affecting their activity
  • The study involved 57 teams grading 10 physical activity indicators, revealing that overall physical activity received a low average grade of D, while school and community environments scored higher at C+
  • The report emphasizes the urgent need for international strategies and policies to address the concerning levels of physical inactivity, especially in light of challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic and other global issues.
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Objective: The aim of this study was to compare academic achievement, cognitive performance, playtime, bullying, and discrimination in adolescents according to traditional uniforms (TUs) and sports uniforms (SUs) worn at school, while simultaneously exploring the influence of the school vulnerability index.

Methods: A total of 988 Chilean adolescents (52.6% boys) aged 10-14 years participated in this cross-sectional study.

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Global changes require urgent integration of health and wellbeing into all urban policies. Complex social and environmental factors define wellbeing outcomes and inequities present in cities. Additionally, political decisions are seldom thought and developed considering the needs and participation of children and adolescents.

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