Page 98 - IJPS-10-3

International Journal of
Population Studies Pandemic impacts preschoolers’ movement behaviors

(WHO, 2020a). With the rapid increment of daily cases The 24-h movement behavior guidelines recommend that
and dissemination of COVID-19 throughout the country, preschoolers should accumulate at least 3 h/day in physical
Brazil swiftly clinched the second spot in the ranking of activity (PA), including at least 1 h in moderate to vigorous
infections and deaths attributed to the infectious disease activities, spend no more than 1 h using digital devices,
(WHO, 2020b). Moreover, from the beginning of the and have a quality sleep lasting 10 – 13 h/day (WHO, 2019;
pandemic until June 2023, more than 37 million confirmed Tremblay et al., 2017). Previous studies conducted before
cases were documented in Brazil (Brazil, 2023a). However, the pandemic underscored the importance of complying
the prevalence of COVID-19 in Brazilian children with the recommendations to improve preschoolers’
is unknown. Considering the Brazilian continental executive function (Bezerra et al., 2020), global cognitive
dimensions, a study carried out in 2021 analyzed social indicators (Walsh et al., 2018), fundamental motor skills
and demographic inequities in the prevalence and the (Mota et al., 2020), and social relationships (Cliff et al.,
number of deaths caused by COVID-19 in Brazilian 2017) and to reduce impulsive behaviors (Guerrero et al.,
children and adolescents. The results highlighted that the 2019). A low percentage of Brazilian preschoolers comply
lowest-income and most socially vulnerable populations with each movement behavior recommendations, namely
were more susceptible to death. Further, it has been found 43% for PA, 35% for sleep time, and only 15% for screen
that the children and adolescents (approximately 2 per time (Martins et al., 2020).
100,000 inhabitants) in the Northeast region of Brazil Previous data from high-income countries showed that
had the second-highest COVID-19-related mortality rate during the COVID-19 pandemic, there was a decrease in
(Martins-Filho et al., 2021). preschoolers’ PA, an increase in screen and sleep time, and
There is a prevailing belief that such dire consequences a reduction in sleep quality (Alonso-Martínez et al., 2021;
in Brazil could have been alleviated if, during the Aguilar-Farias et al., 2020). Children from low-income
pandemic, the countermeasures formulated by political families have limited built and natural environment
representatives were grounded in science. Without opportunities for healthy behaviors (Buck et al., 2019).
sufficiently relying on scientific evidence, the Brazilian These children may be the main victims of the negative
government adopted the COVID-19 Kit as a measure effects of pandemic in terms of movement behaviors. Data
to combat COVID-19, which included a framework of covering preschoolers’ movement behaviors during the
unproven and ineffective therapies (Correia et al., 2022). pandemic is scarce, especially from the low-income ones.
Furthermore, the rising anti-vaccine narrative highlights However, such information is critical to guide strategic
the negative roles played by denialism, conspiracy theories planning to reduce the harmful effects of lockdown. In light
and disinformation at the highest level (Fonseca et al., of this, this study was designed to compare the time spent
2021). Even today, such denialist policies have important on movement behaviors before and during the COVID-19
negative repercussions on pandemic control, with one pandemic among low-income preschoolers.
of them being the low vaccination rate among the child
population against COVID-19 (Brazil, 2023b). 2. Data and methods

The high infectivity of COVID-19 has severely 2.1. Study design
impacted the normal lifestyle of many individuals and This study is part of the Movement’s Cool study, which
forced governments worldwide to implement social aims to analyze the association between movement
distancing and isolation measures. The roll-out of social behaviors and health outcomes in typically children with
distancing strategies for constraining COVID-19 was any type of delay or physical and mental restriction. The
accompanied by the tightening regulation of non-essential pre-pandemic measures were part of the Movement’s Cool
activities in places such as schools, parks, industries, protocol, performed from March to April 2020 (Martins
and commercial venues. The implementation of remote et al., 2020). The study was conducted in compliance
lessons and working and the longer time spent at home with the Helsinki Declarations’ ethical aspects, and the
had dramatically changed many families’ routine, as well methods and procedures were approved by the Research
as their way of living. In this sense, maintaining a routine Ethics Committee of the Health Science Center (protocol
of healthy behaviors in an atmosphere under the menace no. 4.102.806). The assessments conducted during the
of COVID-19 pandemic became an additional challenge. pandemic included the same instrument used in the pre-
Particularly, this became a more tricky challenge for pandemic project and were carried out between May and
families with preschool children. Habits acquired in this June 2020. All the children’s parents were informed about
phase tend to grow until adulthood (Gabel et al., 2017; the study’s protocols and procedures through mobile
Telama, 2009; Van de Straat et al., 2020). message and agreed to participate in this study.

Volume 10 Issue 3 (2024) 92 https://doi.org/10.36922/ijps.0975