Results from the ScreenHealth project were presented at the 20th annual meeting and 16th conference of HEPA Europe, the European Network for the Promotion of Physical Activity that Promotes Health. Daniela Rodrigues, along with Gabriela Costa, Milena Moraes, and Aristides Machado-Rodrigues, orally presented data on “Active School Commuting and Sports Participation: friends or foes for the WHO guidelines in children aged between 3 and 7 years”. Analyzing accelerometry data collected in the second phase of the project, the authors found that more than half of the children (n=170, 60.9%) did not meet the World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines. As the children grow older, transitioning from preschool to school age, the prevalence of compliance with the guidelines increases from 4.2% to 57.1%. Specific strategies for each age group should be developed, allowing physical activity and active transportation to work in a complementary rather than competitive way, thus improving adherence to WHO guidelines on physical activity.
