Prevalence and socio-demographic distributions of meeting RMI Guidelines for Healthy Living among elementary school children in Majuro, Republic of Marshall Islands: a cross-sectional population-based survey

The Lancet Regional Health: Western Pacific · 7 authors, 5 centres

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TL;DR

A cross-sectional survey of 892 elementary school children in Majuro, Republic of Marshall Islands, found that while most met physical activity guidelines, only a minority met guidelines for screen time, sleep, and some dietary habits, with older children generally performing worse.

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406 CHARS

Socio-demographic analysis using mixed-effects logistic regression showed that girls had lower odds of meeting the physical activity recommendation, while children in Grade 5 had significantly lower odds of meeting most guidelines compared to Grade 1. The study highlights a high compliance with physical activity but a need for resources to improve other health behaviors, especially among older children.

STUDY TYPE

cross-sectional

SPECIALTY

pediatrics

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AI pipeline

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100% · A

ORIGINAL PAPER

PMC10485679

Prevalence and socio-demographic distributions of meeting RMI Guidelines for Healthy Living among elementary school children in Majuro, Republic of Marshall Islands: a cross-sectional population-based survey

The Lancet Regional Health: Western Pacific

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ABSTRACT

Summary Background Childhood obesity is high in Republic of Marshall Islands (RMI). We report the prevalence and socio-demographic distribution of selected obesity-related risk factors among children in Majuro, RMI. Methods Sixteen elementary schools were approached and students and parents in Grades 1, 3, and 5 invited to participate in this cross-sectional population-based survey. Accelerometry and a questionnaire were used to collect data on children's physical activity (PA), sleep, screen time and dietary behaviours. Descriptive statistics and mixed-effects logistic regression were used to examine differences in the proportions of children meeting selected RMI Healthy Living Guidelines by sex, school grade and school sector. Findings Thirteen schools and 958 children were recruited, of which 892 (52.2% girls; mean age 9.3 ± 1.8 years) provided useable data. Around 90% met the PA, 29% screen time, 13% sleep, 69% sugar-sweetened beverage and 56% highly processed food guidelines. The proportion meeting individual guidelines was higher among children in Grade 1 compared with Grade 5. Being a girl (0.27; 95% CI 0.16, 0.46) was associated with lower odds of meeting the PA recommendation. Compared with children from Grade 1, those in Grade 5 had lower odds of meeting the PA (0.28; 95% CI 0.15, 0.55), screen time (0.60; 95% CI 0.40, 0.89), sleep duration (0.33; 95% CI 0.18, 0.59), sugar-sweetened beverage (0.35; 95% CI 0.23, 0.53), and consumption of highly processed foods recommendations (0.49; 95% CI 0.33, 0.72). Interpretation While most children in RMI are adequately active, resources are needed to promote healthier levels of screen time, sleep, sugar-sweetened beverage and highly processed food consumption, especially among older children. Funding This study was funded by World Diabetes Foundation; Canvasback Missions, RMI; NHMRC Australia (APP1176858); Pacific Community. Keywords: Physical activity, Screen time, Sleep, Diet

CITATION EXPORT

Tanner Smith, Kar Hau Chong, Penny Cross et al.. Prevalence and socio-demographic distributions of meeting RMI Guidelines for Healthy Living among elementary school children in Majuro, Republic of Marshall Islands: a cross-sectional population-based survey. The Lancet Regional Health: Western Pacific. (2023). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lanwpc.2023.100783

AUTHORS

7 · 5 CENTRES

Tanner Smith, Kar Hau Chong, Penny Cross, Maybelline Ipil, Pranson Eliou, Rachel Novotny, Anthony D Okely

aCanvasback Missions Inc., P.O. Box 1771, Majuro, 96960, Marshall Islands
bEarly Start, School of Health and Society, Faculty of the Arts, Social Science and Humanities, University of Wollongong, NSW, 2522, Australia
cMarshall Islands Epidemiology & Prevention Initiatives (MIEPI), P.O. Box 3666, Majuro, 96960, Marshall Islands
dRMI Public School System, State Department of Education, P.O. Box 3, Majuro, 96960, Marshall Islands
eDepartment of Human Nutrition, Food and Animal Sciences, College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, HI, 96822, USA