Correlation Between Levels of Physical Activity and Pulmonary Functions in School-going Children of Ahmedabad, India: A Cross-sectional Study

Introduction: Physical activity is generally acknowledged as a determinant of overall health, but its physiological effects on the pulmonary system in healthy children and adolescents have not been thoroughly studied. It is proven that physical activity imposes a substantial load on the cardio-pulmonary system and promotes adaptive improvements in its efficiency. Hence, it can be assumed that physical activity may enhance pulmonary functions in younger populations too. Aim: The present study aims to find out if any correlation persists between physical activity level and pulmonary function in school-going children and adolescents (8-14 years). Materials and Methods: The present cross-sectional study was conducted on school-going children aged between 8 to 14 years from four different schools of Ahmedabad, India from August2024 to November-2024. The Physical Activity Questionnaire for Children (PAQ-C) was filled out by children, and pulmonary function was measured through a standard digital spirometer. As the data were normally distributed (using KolmogorovSmirnov test), Pearson’s correlation was used to analyse the correlation between PAQ-C and pulmonary functions {Forced Vital Capacity (FVC), Forced Expiratory Volume in one second (FEV1), Forced Expiratory Flow between 25% and 75% of Vital Capacity (FEF 25-75% ), Peak Expiratory Flow Rate (PEFR), Slow Vital Capacity (SVC), Maximum Voluntary Ventilation (MVV)}. 75%, PEFR, SVC, MVV). Moreover, multiple regression for all pulmonary functions was done for various independent variables {physical Activity, age, gender, height, weight and Body Mass Index (BMI)}. Results: Out of the total 534 children, 292 were boys and 242 were girls. Physical activity was reported by 34.08 (182), 35.5% (190), 26.4% (141), and 3.9% (21) of children with PAQ-C levels of 1-1.99, 2-2.99, 3-3.99, and 4-4.99, respectively. There was no statistical correlation found between physical activity levels and pulmonary function tests (Pearson’s correlation test) in these children. Furthermore, when PAQ-C was used as the key independent variable and gender, age, height, weight, and BMI as covariates, the regression model was very stable for FVC, FEV1, SVC, and FEF at 25% to 75%. However, PAQ-C had no influence on Pulmonary Function Test (PFT) except for the small effect on PEFR. Conclusion: The lack of a statistical relationship between physical activity levels and pulmonary function in schoolaged children shows that, within this age range, pulmonary function may be more significantly influenced by growth and development variables like height, age and gender rather than physical activity.