Compliance With the 24-h Movement Behaviours Guidelines Among Brazilian Toddlers

Background

Compliance with the WHO 24-Hour Movement Guidelines (i.e., physical activity, screen time and sleep duration) has been reported in studies comprising children in the early years. Despite the importance of these behaviours for healthy development, there is limited data on the proportion of toddlers who meet these recommendations. This study reported the compliance with the 24-h movement behaviours guidelines among low-income Brazilian toddlers.

Methods

Physical activity (PA) was objectively measured using Actigraph wGT3X accelerometer in 144 toddlers (73 girls; 12–35 months of age). Sleep duration and screen time were parent-reported. Descriptive analyses were performed, and toddlers were classified as compliant/noncompliant with the 24-h movement guidelines, according to age and sex. The chi-square test and the Mann–Whitney test were used to explore differences and association according to age and sex.

Results

Only 21% of the assessed toddlers complied with the overall movement behaviours guidelines. The highest prevalence of compliance was observed for PA among both boys and girls (98.63% and 98.59%, respectively), and among 1- and 2-year-old toddlers (100% and 97.61%, respectively). In contrast, the lowest compliance rates were observed for screen time (23.94% for boys and 32.87% for girls; and 16.66% for 1-year-old and 36.90% for 2-year-old toddlers). More than 60% of the assessed toddlers complied with sleep duration recommendation (74.64% and 67.12% for boys and girls, respectively; 73.33% and 69.04%, for 1-year-old and 2-year-olds, respectively).

Conclusion

Implementing strategies to encourage toddlers’ compliance with the 24-h movement guidelines in Brazilian low-income families should focus on maintaining PA levels and reducing screen time.