Correlates of Physical Activity in Adolescents with Intellectual Disabilities

描述(申请人提供)：定期体力活动在健康和疾病预防中起着重要作用。智障儿童和青少年的健康状况比其他人群差，他们缺乏体力活动可能会造成已查明的残疾人的健康差距。有证据表明，患有智障的儿童和青少年没有进行足够的体育活动，他们的健康状况不佳，而且他们比他们通常发育的同龄人更久坐不动。然而，关于智障儿童和青少年体力活动的研究有限。为了在青少年智障患者中开展有效的体育活动干预，必须首先检查他们的活动水平，并了解与他们参与相关的因素。众所周知，体育活动受到许多个人、心理社会、行为和环境因素的影响，但对于患有智力缺陷的儿童和青少年来说，这些因素可能会有所不同，因为他们在智力功能和适应行为方面存在局限性，这可能限制他们参与的机会和能力。该项目的具体目标是：1)比较13-18岁智障青少年和一般发育青少年在中等强度和剧烈体力活动以及结构性活动上花费的时间；2)比较智障青少年和一般发育青少年在久坐行为上花费的时间；3)比较智障青少年和一般发育青少年之间与体力活动和久坐行为相关的个人、家庭和社区因素。60名年龄在13-18岁之间的轻度智障青少年和60名年龄和性别相当的典型发育青少年将参与这项研究。体力活动水平将在连续7天内使用加速计进行客观测量。通过对青少年参与者及其家长的问卷调查和访谈，我们将收集有关人口统计数据、青少年和家长参与体育活动的情况、对体育活动的障碍和支持、父母和青少年对体育活动的重视程度，以及青少年对体育活动的享受和自我效能的信息。患有智障的儿童和青少年的健康需求在研究工作中一直没有得到充分的代表，因此，他们是得不到充分服务的少数群体。拟议的项目试图通过描述患有智障的青少年的身体活动模式并将他们与典型的发育中的同龄人进行比较来解决这一差距。我们还将确定与体力活动相关的个人、家庭和社区因素，以确定它们是否与典型发育中的青少年不同。这一信息将对制定专门满足智障青少年需求的体育活动方案具有直接影响。公共卫生相关性：美国卫生与公众服务部已确定智力残疾(智力低下)儿童、青少年和成人之间存在重大健康差距。这一人群健康状况不佳的部分原因可能是低水平的体力活动，而政府改善健康的议程包括促进体力活动。体力活动被列为2010年健康人的主要健康指标，目标包括提高儿童的活动水平和减少久坐行为。为智障儿童和青少年制定有效的健康促进计划需要深入了解他们的体力活动水平和与行为有关的独特因素。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Regular physical activity plays an important role in health and disease prevention. Children and adolescents with intellectual disabilities (ID) have poorer health than other populations and their lack of physical activity may contribute to the health disparities that have been identified in people with disabilities. Evidence supports that children and adolescents with ID do not engage in sufficient physical activity, that their fitness is low, and that they are more sedentary than their typically developing peers. However, research on physical activity in children and adolescents with ID is limited. To inform the development of effective physical activity interventions in adolescents with ID, it is imperative to first examine their activity levels and to understand the factors associated with their participation. Physical activity is known to be influenced by many individual, psychosocial, behavioral, and environmental factors, but the factors are likely to be different in children and adolescents with ID due to their limitations in intellectual functioning and adaptive behaviors, which may limit their opportunities and abilities to participate. The specific aims of this project are: 1) to compare time spent in moderate and vigorous physical activity and in structured activities between adolescents ages 13-18 with ID and typically developing adolescents; 2) to compare time spent in sedentary behavior between adolescents with ID and typically developing adolescents; and 3) to compare the individual, family, and community factors associated with physical activity and sedentary behavior between adolescents with ID and typically developing adolescents. Sixty adolescents ages 13-18 with mild ID and 60 typically developing adolescents of comparable chronological age and gender will participate in the study. Physical activity levels will be objectively measured using accelerometers over 7 consecutive days. Through questionnaires and interviews with the adolescent participants and their parents, we will gather information on demographics, adolescent and parent participation in physical activity, barriers and supports to physical activity, the importance that parents and adolescents place on physical activity, and adolescent enjoyment and self-efficacy in relation to physical activity. The health needs of children and adolescents with ID have been under-represented in research efforts, and thus, they represent an under-served minority. The proposed project seeks to address this gap by describing the physical activity patterns of adolescents with ID and comparing them to their typically developing peers. We will also identify the individual, family, and community factors associated with physical activity to determine whether they are different than those found in typically developing adolescents. This information will have direct implications for informing the development of physical activity programs specific to meeting the needs of adolescents with intellectual disabilities. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: The US Department of Health and Human Services has identified major heath disparities in children, adolescents, and adults with intellectual disabilities (mental retardation). The poor health of this population may be caused in part by low levels of physical activity, and the government's agenda for improving health includes physical activity promotion. Physical activity is listed prominently as a leading health indicator in Healthy People 2010, and objectives include improving activity levels and reducing sedentary behavior in children. Developing effective health promotion programs for children and adolescents with intellectual disabilities requires an in-depth understanding of their physical activity levels and of the factors uniquely related to behavior.