Gross motor coordination and their relationship with body mass and physical activity level during growth in Children aged 8–11 years old: a longitudinal and allometric approach

• Published in: PeerJ (San Francisco, CA) Vol. 10; p. e13483
• Main Authors: Giuriato, Matteo, Lovecchio, Nicola, Carnevale Pellino, Vittoria, Mieszkowski, Jan, Kawczyński, Adam, Nevill, Alan, Biino, Valentina
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States PeerJ. Ltd 08.06.2022; PeerJ, Inc; PeerJ Inc
• Subjects: Adolescent; Allometric approach; Analysis; Anatomy and Physiology; Anthropometry; Body mass; Body mass index; Body Size; Child; Child development; Children; Children's furniture; Elementary school students; Exercise; Families & family life; Growth; Humans; Kinesiology; Lean body mass; Motor ability; Motor Skills; Multilevel modeling; Obesity; Ontogeny; Pediatrics; Permits; Physical activity; Physical activity level; Physical education; Physical Fitness; Public Health; Sports facilities; Training; Canada; Italy; Multilevel modeling; Children; Physical activity level; Allometric approach
• ISSN: 2167-8359; 2167-8359
• DOI: 10.7717/peerj.13483

Gross motor coordination (GMC) is fundamental to the harmonious development of physical skills during the growth of children. This research aimed to explore the developmental changes in GMC during childhood, having controlled for the differences in children's body size and shape using a longitudinal, allometric scaling methodology. A total of 104 children from North-East Italy of third-fourth- and fifth-grade students and each participant were tested for three consequently years. Subjects performed the short version of korperkoordinationstest fur kinder (KTK3) and the anthropometric characteristics were simultaneously collected. The physical activity questionnaire (PAQ-C) was used to evaluate the weekly physical engagement. Ontogenetic multiplicative models suggested nonlinear associations with GMC across the children's developmental years. Linear physique was a significant predictor associated with the development of GMC across time. PAQ-C was significantly associated with GMC from 8 to 13 years old. Growth does not respect linear trends. A greater lean body mass could be assessed as a reliable predictor of GMC in children. The crucial period of life to improve the GMC is 8-10 years, while stabilization becomes evident from 10 to 13 years.