| Abstract | PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to compare body composition and physical activity in children with Down syndrome to their typically developing peers. METHODS: Participants included individuals with Down syndrome enrolled in a comprehensive preschool program and typically developing individuals in the community. Participants wore Actigraph accelerometers for seven days. Additional measures included height, weight, body mass index (BMI), BMI percentile, and percent body fat. RESULTS: BMI mean for control group: 16.37+ 0.97, and DS group: 18.16 +1.35 (p=0.002). Physical activity data showed minutes of light activity for control group: 105.9 + 67.4, and DS group 102.6 + 20.7. Minutes of moderate-to-vigorous activity for control group: 70.9 + 60.8 and DS group: 57.9 + 16.2. CONCLUSIONS: Anthropometric measures showed that BMI and BMI% are higher in the Down syndrome group than their typically developing peers which parallels with previous research. The Down syndrome group was also significantly shorter. Shorter stature is a Down syndrome associated characteristic, and therefore, an expected result. Physical activity data showed that both groups participated in similar amounts of light and moderate-to-vigorous activity. This could be due to the emphasis of physical activity at the Kinderfrogs school. |
