Light Physical Activity More Beneficial for Children

FRIDAY, June 23, 2023 (HealthDay News) -- Light physical activity (LPA) in childhood is more effective than moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) in reducing inflammation caused by being sedentary, according to a study published online June 13 in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.

Andrew O. Agbaje, M.D., M.P.H., from the University of Eastern Finland in Kuopio, used data from 792 children participating in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children to examine the role of fat mass, lipids, and insulin resistance on the associations of cumulative sedentary time, LPA, and MVPA with inflammation.

Agbaje found that in 13 years of follow-up, sedentary time increased, LPA decreased, and MVPA had a U-shaped increase, while high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) increased. The positive associations of sedentary time with hsCRP were partly suppressed by insulin resistance (23.5 percent suppression) among participants who were overweight or obese. The negative associations of LPA with hsCRP were partly mediated by fat mass (30 percent mediation), which had a larger mediating effect (77 percent) on the negative associations of MVPA with hsCRP.

"These findings emphasize that LPA may be an unsung hero in preventing diseases from early life, and in this regard it could be two to three times more effective than MVPA," Agbaje said in a statement.

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