Associations Between Sedentary Behaviour and Fine and Gross Motor Skills in 3- to 4-Year-Olds: A Secondary Data Analysis From Sunrise International Study Pilot Studies.
Nana A Kwofie, Adang Suherman, Alex A Florindo and 22 others
PMID 40356225WHAT IT FOUND
In 3- to 4-year-olds, higher screen time was linked to lower fine and gross motor scores.
Meeting WHO guidelines for screen time and restraint was associated with being on track for motor development. Total daily sedentary time measured by accelerometer showed no significant link to motor skills.
Key findings
01Accumulating one more hour of screen time daily was associated with a 0.55-point reduction in fine motor skills scores and a 0.53-point reduction in gross motor skill scores.
02Children who accumulated one more hour of screen time per day were less likely to be on track for fine motor skill development (OR 0.855) and gross motor skill development (OR 0.911).
03No significant association was observed between total daily sedentary behaviour measured by accelerometer and fine or gross motor skill scores.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
The cross-sectional design prevents causal inference; it is unclear if screen time affects motor skills or if children with poorer motor skills engage in more screen time. Screen time and restraint were measured by parent report, which has not been fully validated for reliability in this context. Accelerometer data required only one valid day of wear, which may not accurately reflect usual sedentary behaviour. The accelerometer measure of total sedentary behaviour did not distinguish between different types of sedentary activity, such as screen time versus other sitting behaviours.
Declared interests
The authors declare no conflicts of interest. The study was funded by the National Health and Medical Research Council, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, and the Biomedical Research Foundation.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that all sedentary behaviour is equally harmful to motor development. Total daily sedentary time measured by accelerometer showed no significant association with motor skills, while screen time specifically was linked to poorer outcomes. This suggests the content of sedentary time matters more than the total duration of sitting.