Physical Activity Levels and health aspects in children from 4 to 6 years old of Granada

Abstract

A sedentary behaviour, physical inactivity, as well as overweight and obesity are the main physical and mental health problems of children and young people and adults. These problems may be due principally to diet and physical activity from a very early age. Today, children from a very early age are fed daily with junk food, as well as ultraprocessed sweets, adding to this, the lack of physical activity and sedentary lifestyles, mainly due to new technologies, thus creating bad habits. The aim of this study is to relate and analyse the adherence to the Mediterranean Diet and the level of physical activity of children aged between 4 and 6 years, focusing on the existing differences between gender and age. A descriptive cross-sectional study was used, with a sample of 243 participants from the city of Granada, completing the KIDMED test. The results showed that boys are the ones who do more physical activity, as well as better adherence to the Mediterranean Diet. In addition, it is worth noting that 7 out of 10 of the participants need to improve or have a poor quality diet.