Sports Participation and Parent-Reported Health-Related Quality of Life in Children: Longitudinal Associations

doi:10.1016/j.jpeds.2014.01.071

The Journal of Pediatrics

Volume 164, Issue 6, June 2014, Pages 1469-1474

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpeds.2014.01.071 Get rights and content

Objective

To investigate the longitudinal association between sports participation and parent-reported health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in children.

Study design

Cohort study that used data drawn from the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children in waves 3 (2008) and 4 (2010). Participants were a nationally representative sample of 4042 Australian children ages 8.25 (SD = 0.44) years at baseline and followed-up 24 months later.

Results

After we adjusted for multiple covariates, children who continued to participate in sports between the ages of 8 and 10 years had greater parent-reported HRQOL at age 10 (Eta² = .02) compared with children who did not participate in sports (P ≤ .001), children who commenced participation after 8 years of age (P = .004), and children who dropped out of sports before reaching 10 years of age (P = .04). Children who participated in both team and individual sports (P = .02) or team sports alone (P = .04) had greater HRQOL compared with children who participated in individual sports alone (Eta² = .01). The benefits of sports participation were strongest for girls (P < .05; Eta² = .003).

Conclusions

Children's participation in developmentally appropriate team sports helps to protect HRQOL and should be encouraged at an early age and maintained for as long as possible.

Section snippets

Methods

The reporting of this study has followed the guidelines set out in the STROBE statement.¹⁸ Data were obtained from the K-cohort of the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (LSAC).¹⁹ LSAC is a nationally representative longitudinal survey of Australian children that examines the social, environmental, and economic impacts on children's development and wellbeing. Data were collected by trained professionals from the child's primary parent (the person most responsible for the care of the

Results

Unadjusted PedsQL scores at age 10 are reported in Table I and are stratified by selected demographic characteristics. In total, 4042 participants had complete data on sports participation at both time points and were included in the sample. Participants with missing data at these time points (n = 122) were more likely to have a parent that had not finished high school. There were no other differences according to study variables.25, 26 Furthermore, using the fully adjusted model, we excluded a

Discussion

This study has shown that, after accounting for baseline HRQOL, children who maintain participation in sports between the ages of 8 and 10 years report a greater HRQOL at age 10 than children who do not participate in sports, children who drop out of sports, and children who commence participation after the age of 8 years. Differences are potentially the result of a protective effect experienced by sports participants. The magnitude of total HRQOL differences between sport participants and

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: The LSAC is conducted in partnership between the Department of Families, Housing, Community Services, and Indigenous Affairs, the Australian Institute of Family Studies, and the Australian Bureau of Statistics. They were responsible for the design and conduct of the study, and the collection and management of data. The findings and views reported in this paper are those of the authors and should not be attributed to study partners. D.C. is funded by a National Heart Foundation of Australia - Postdoctoral Research Fellowship (PH 11S 6025). A.O. is supported by a National Heart Foundation of Australia Career Development Fellowship (CR 11S 6099). C.M. is supported by the Australian Research Council Discovery (DP110100857). The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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Original ArticleSports Participation and Parent-Reported Health-Related Quality of Life in Children: Longitudinal Associations

Objective

Study design

Results

Conclusions

Section snippets

Methods

Results

Discussion

Lancet

Ambul Pediatr

Psychol Sport Exerc

Psychol Sport Exerc

Systematic review of health-related quality of life models

Health and Qual Life Out

Research on health-related quality of life: dissemination into practical applications

Qual Life Res

Assessment of quality-of-life outcomes

N Engl J Med

The PedsQL in pediatric cancer: reliability and validity of the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory Generic Core Scales, Multidimensional Fatigue Scale, and Cancer Module

Cancer

Quality of life in children with heart disease as perceived by children and parents

Pediatrics

The PedsQL in Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes: reliability and validity of the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory Generic Core Scales and Type 1 Diabetes Module

Diabetes Care

The PedsQL 4.0 generic core scales: sensitivity, responsiveness, and impact on clinical decision-making

J Behav Med

Health-realted quality of life of overweight and obese children

JAMA

Screen time and physical activity behaviours are associated with health-related quality of life in Australian adolescents

Qual Life Res

Participation in selected sports activities: 2009

Does sports club participation contribute to health-related quality of life?

Med Sci Sports Exerc

A systematic reviw of the psychological and social benefits of participation in sport for children and adolescents: informing development of a conceptual model of health through sport

Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act

A unique patient population? Health-related quality of life in adolescent versus general, healthy adolescent individuals

J Athl Training

Original Article
Sports Participation and Parent-Reported Health-Related Quality of Life in Children: Longitudinal Associations