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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Public Health
Sec. Children and Health
Volume 12 - 2024 |
doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1412634
The prospective associations of 24-hour movement behaviours and domain-specific activities with executive function and academic achievement among school-aged children in Singapore
Provisionally accepted- 1 National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
- 2 Université Paris Cité and Université Sorbonne Paris Nord, Inserm, INRAE, Paris, France
- 3 Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences (A*STAR), Singapore, Singapore
- 4 KK Women's and Children's Hospital, Singapore, Singapore
- 5 University of Southampton, Southampton, Hampshire, United Kingdom
Background: Physical activity (PA), sedentary behaviour (SB), and sleep are collectively referred to as 24-hour movement behaviours, which may be linked to cognitive development in children. However, most of the evidence was based on cross-sectional studies and/or solely relied on parent-reported information on children’s behaviours, and it remains uncertain whether all domains/contexts of PA and SB are similarly associated with executive function and academic achievement. Objective: We investigated the prospective associations of accelerometer-measured 24h- movement behaviours and domain-specific PA and SB with executive function and academic achievement among school-aged children in Singapore. Methods: The Growing Up in Singapore Towards healthy Outcomes (GUSTO) cohort used a wrist-worn accelerometer (Actigraph-GT3x+) to measure 24h-movement behaviours data at ages 5.5 and 8 years. Executive function and academic achievement were assessed using NEuroPSYchology (NEPSY) and Wechsler Individual Achievement Tests at ages 8.5 and 9-years, respectively. Compositional data analyses were conducted to explore the associations of 24h-movement behaviour with outcomes, and multiple linear regression models to examine the associations of domain-specific PA and SB with outcomes (n=432). Results: Among 432 children whose parents agreed to cognitive assessments (47% girls and 58% Chinese), the composition of 24h-movement behaviours at ages 5.5 and 8 years was not associated with executive function and academic achievement. However, higher moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA) relative to remaining movement behaviours at age 5.5 years was associated with lower academic achievement [Mean difference (95% confidence interval): -0.367 (-0.726, -0.009) z-score], and reallocating MVPA time to sleep showed higher academic achievement scores [30 minutes from MVPA to sleep: 0.214 (0.023, 0.404) z-score]. Certain domains of PA and SB, notably organised PA/sports, outdoor play, and reading books were favourably associated with outcomes of interest, while indoor play and screen-viewing were unfavourably associated. Conclusion: The associations between movement behaviours and cognitive outcomes are multifaceted, influenced by specific domains of PA and SB. This study underscores the importance of participation in organised PA/sports, outdoor active play, and reading books, while ensuring adequate sleep and limiting screen viewing, to enhance cognitive outcomes. These findings underscore the need for further research into time-use trade-offs.
Keywords: physical activity, Sedentary behaviour, Sleep, Movement behaviours, Cognition, Children, accelerometer, Compositional data analysis
Received: 05 Apr 2024; Accepted: 29 Jul 2024.
Copyright: © 2024 Natarajan, Bernard, Tan, Chu, Goh, Tan, Shek, Chong, Tan, Chan, Yap, Godfrey, Lee, Meaney, Eriksson, Tan, Law and Müller-Riemenschneider. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Padmapriya Natarajan, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
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