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Social and Environmental Determinants of Child Physical Activity in a Rural Mexican-Origin Community

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Abstract

California’s rural agricultural communities face an increased burden of obesity and metabolic disease. The present objective is to define the social and environmental influences to child obesity and physical activity within Mexican-origin communities in California’s Central Valley. A range of data (anthropometric, socioeconomic, demographic, cultural and environmental) were collected on more than 650 children enrolled in Niños Sanos, Familia Sana. Physical activity data were gathered from a subsample of children 4–7 years of age (n = 148) via accelerometer. Cross sectional analyses explored the relationship between BMI and physical activity and the influence of numerous social and environmental variables. In this sample 45 % of children were determined to be overweight or obese. Boys had a higher daily average moderate-to-vigorous physical activity than girls (p = 0.008). Chi square analyses showed weight status was associated with activity level in girls (p = 0.03) but not boys. Multivariate regression revealed several social and environmental indicators influenced BMI and physical activity (p = 0.004). In this population of school-age children of Mexican-origin, girls may benefit more from targeted efforts to increase MVPA. Family and community support systems may also boost child participation in physical activities.

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Acknowledgments

Niños Sanos, Familia Sana (Healthy Children, Healthy Families) is funded by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture of the United States Department of Agriculture, Grant No. 2011-68001-30167. The authors would like to thank the following individuals and agencies: Maria Rangel, NSFS Site Coordinator, Judith Martinez, NSFS Nutrition Educator, Ivan Garcia, NSFS Administrative Assistant, the advisory council and promotores in Firebaugh and San Joaquin, the Firebaugh Las Deltas Unified School District and the Golden Plains Unified School District.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Foods for Health Institute, University of California, Davis, 2141 Robert Mondavi Institute, North, One Shields Avenue, Davis, CA, 95616, USA

    Sara E. Schaefer & J. Bruce German

  2. Center for Transnational Health, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, USA

    Rosa Gomez-Camacho & Lisa Martinez

  3. School of Medicine, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, USA

    Banafsheh Sadeghi

  4. Department of Food Science and Technology, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, USA

    J. Bruce German

  5. Department of Chicano(a) Studies, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, USA

    Adela de la Torre

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  1. Sara E. Schaefer
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  2. Rosa Gomez-Camacho
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  4. Banafsheh Sadeghi
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Correspondence to Sara E. Schaefer.

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Schaefer, S.E., Gomez-Camacho, R., Martinez, L. et al. Social and Environmental Determinants of Child Physical Activity in a Rural Mexican-Origin Community. J Community Health 41, 409–416 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10900-015-0111-4

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