Nutrition and physical development assessment of pre-school and primary school children practising artistic gymnastics
African Journal for Physical Activity and Health Sciences, 22(2:2), 565–577
Growth, nutrition and training belong in the same conversation.
Young artistic gymnasts combine childhood growth with repeated physical training. Coaches and families may use accessible measures such as body mass and BMI, but these cannot distinguish muscle from fat or explain whether reported food intake is likely to match a child’s activity.
This study extended the researchers’ earlier physical-development work by adding a nutrition questionnaire and calculated energy requirements to the assessment of young gymnasts.
What can a combined assessment of diet, growth and body composition reveal about young artistic gymnasts?
One assessment linking physical development with reported diet.
The researchers assessed 38 children attending artistic-gymnastics classes at Sports Centre Levski in Sofia, Bulgaria, in 2012.
This was a cross-sectional study, not a nutrition or training intervention. Dietary intake was estimated through food-frequency questionnaires, while energy expenditure was calculated from predictive equations and activity coefficients.
Young artistic gymnasts
The sample comprised 20 boys and 18 girls aged 4–12 years. The researchers considered pre-school and primary-school age groups and compared selected competitor and overweight subgroups.
Growth and body composition
Height, body mass and BMI were assessed with WHO age-related Z-scores and percentiles. Triceps and subscapular skinfolds were measured and used with child-specific equations to estimate body-fat percentage.
Parent-completed questionnaire
Parents completed an adapted 24-question food-frequency questionnaire with a research-team doctor. Protein, carbohydrate, fat and energy intake were estimated; expected energy expenditure was calculated from predictive equations and activity coefficients.
The combined assessment added context to BMI and reported intake.
Most comparisons were descriptive. The clearly reported statistically significant subgroup difference concerned calculated energy expenditure per kilogram, not nutrient intake.
Most were within the stated normal range
BMI-for-age classified 72% within the normal range and 19% as overweight. Seven children were between +1 and +2 Z-score; none was classified as thin or obese by the study’s stated WHO thresholds.
Reported nutrient patterns differed from the 1997 survey
Across the paper’s age-group comparisons, estimated protein intake was higher, while carbohydrate, fat and total energy intake were lower than values from the 1997 Bulgarian national nutrition survey. This was a historical external comparison, not a contemporary control group.
Calculated energy expenditure per kilogram
In the subgroup analysis, calculated energy expenditure was higher in competitors (n=13) than in the overweight group (n=6): 70.16 ± 8.82 versus 48.73 ± 8.98 kcal/kg/24h (p < 0.001).
Estimated energy intake
Estimated energy intake per kilogram did not differ significantly between competitors and the overweight subgroup: 72.32 ± 21.19 versus 63.65 ± 15.28 kcal/kg/24h (p > 0.05).
Macronutrient intake per kilogram
The subgroup differences in estimated protein, fat and carbohydrate intake per kilogram were not statistically significant (all p > 0.05).
Estimated intake-to-expenditure ratio
The paper reported calculated ratios of 1.03 in competitors and 1.27 in the overweight subgroup. These estimates depended on the questionnaire and predictive energy-expenditure method.
Use several measures, then interpret them cautiously.
The study supports considering BMI alongside body composition, reported diet and training background. Its estimates can help structure a fuller assessment, but they are not a diagnosis or a direct measurement of an individual child’s energy balance.
Build a broader picture
For young athletes, combining growth, body-composition and nutrition information may identify questions that a single BMI value cannot answer. Any decisions should remain individual and involve appropriately qualified practitioners.
What constrains the result
- This was a small, cross-sectional study from one gymnastics centre with no matched non-gymnast control group.
- Diet came from a parent-completed questionnaire, energy expenditure was calculated, and the national comparison data were from 1997.
No diagnosis or causal rule
- The study does not prove that gymnastics or a particular diet caused the observed BMI or body-composition patterns.
- The results do not provide personalised dietary, medical or training advice for a child.
Read and cite the paper.
Use the verified publisher record or read the complete article hosted on STK SPORT.
Kolimechkov, S. T., Petrov, L. A., Alexandrova, A. V., & Atanasov, P. S. (2016). Nutrition and physical development assessment of pre-school and primary school children practising artistic gymnastics. African Journal for Physical Activity and Health Sciences, 22(2:2), 565–577.