title: Compliance with national guidelines for physical activity in U.S. preschoolers: measurement and interpretation.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The National Association for Sport and Physical Education (NASPE) guidelines for preschoolers recommend 120 minutes of physical activity daily. Two issues, however, create a situation whereby substantial variation in estimated prevalence rates of (in)active preschoolers are reported. First, NASPE guidelines have been interpreted in multiple ways. Second, objective monitoring via accelerometry is the most widely accepted measure of preschoolers' physical activity, yet multiple cut points provide vastly different estimates of physical activity. This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of preschoolers meeting NASPE guidelines and illustrate the differences among rates, given guideline interpretations, and cut points.
  
  
  METHODS
  Three- to 5-year-old children (n = 397) wore ActiGraph accelerometers for an average of 5.9 days. NASPE guidelines were expressed in 3 ways: 120 minutes daily of light-to-vigorous physical activity; 120 minutes daily of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity; and 60 minutes daily of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity. Estimates of 120 minutes daily of light-to-vigorous physical activity, 120 minutes daily of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity, and 60 minutes daily of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity were calculated on the basis of 4 common accelerometer cut points for preschoolers: Pate, Reilly and Puyau, Sirard, and Freedson.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Prevalence rates varied considerably, with estimates ranging from 13.5% to 99.5%, 0.0% to 95.7%, and 0.5% to 99.5% for 120 minutes daily of light-to-vigorous physical activity, 120 minutes daily of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity, and 60 minutes daily of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity, respectively.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The variation in NASPE guidelines, coupled with different accelerometer cut points, results in disparate estimates of (in)active preschoolers. This limits the ability to estimate population prevalence levels of physical activity that can be used to guide public health policy. Development of new guidelines should focus on an explicit delineation of physical activity and attempt to standardize the measurement of preschoolers' physical activity.
authors.affiliation: Department of Exercise Science, Arnold School of Public Health, University of South Carolina, 921 Assembly St, Room 131, Columbia, SC 29208, USA. beets@mailbox.sc.edu
authors.forename: Michael W
authors.initials: MW
authors.lastname: Beets
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Bornstein
authors.forename: Marsha
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Dowda
authors.forename: Russell R
authors.initials: RR
authors.lastname: Pate
mesh_terms: D056044:Actigraphy; D002675:Child, Preschool; D018479:Early Intervention, Educational / Q000592:standards / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D004734:Energy Metabolism; D015444:Exercise; D005260:Female; D019983:Guideline Adherence / Q000592:standards* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006291:Health Policy; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009043:Motor Activity; D010806:Physical Education and Training / Q000592:standards* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012578:Schools, Nursery / Q000592:standards / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D013022:South Carolina; D014481:United States