OBJECTIVES: Childhood obesity is a growing global problem that can be prevented by improving diet quality. Mediterranean diet (MedDiet), historically present in Mediterranean countries, is considered one of the healthiest dietary patterns. This cross-sectional study aimed to determine the MedDiet adherence and anthropometric parameters in 9-year-old children from the central geographic locations of Split-Dalmatia County, Croatia. METHODS: The study analysed data obtained from 158 children aged nine years from central parts of Dalmatia: Split and Hvar. To assess the MedDiet adherence, the parents of the children filled out the Mediterranean Diet Index (KIDMED) questionnaire. Appointed school medicine specialists collected anthropometric data of the children and categorized them into body mass index (BMI) categories according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) criteria. Additionally, we assessed the influence of parents' education degree on children's MedDiet adherence and anthropometric measures. RESULTS: Results showed that more than a quarter of nine-year-olds included in this study were overweight or obese (BMI ≥ 85th percentile for age and sex). One of the main findings was that 72% of children had suboptimal (poor or average) MedDiet adherence. Moreover, children with suboptimal KIDMED results (KI < 8) had significantly higher body weight, waist circumference, hip circumference, and waist-to-height ratio. Also, results showed that mothers' education notably influences children's anthropometry. CONCLUSION: Our study found that childhood obesity is a significant concern among 9-year-olds, with a high prevalence of overweight and obesity. Additionally, our results showed that MedDiet adherence is suboptimal among this age group. These results indicate that children of the Mediterranean are not spared of modern life challenges. This problem should be prioritized in the future to prevent the development of a metabolically compromised adult population.

• Keywords
• KIDMED, Mediterranean diet, children's health, obesity, public health,
• MeSH
• Anthropometry MeSH
• Child MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Pediatric Obesity * prevention & control   MeSH
• Waist Circumference MeSH
• Waist-Hip Ratio MeSH
• Cross-Sectional Studies MeSH
• Surveys and Questionnaires MeSH
• Parents MeSH
• Diet, Mediterranean * statistics & numerical data   MeSH
• Educational Status MeSH
• Body Weight MeSH
• Check Tag
• Child MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Male MeSH
• Female MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH
• Geographicals
• Croatia epidemiology   MeSH

BACKGROUND: The optimal balance of time spent on daily movement behaviors ("The Goldilocks Day") associated with childhood obesity remains unknown. OBJECTIVE: To estimate the optimal durations of sleep, sedentary behavior (SB), light physical activity (LPA), and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MPVA) associated with excess adiposity in a paediatric population. METHODS: Accelerometer-measured 24-h movement behaviors were obtained from 659 Czech children and adolescents (8-18-year-olds). Adiposity indicators were body mass index z-score, fat mass percentage, fat-free mass index, and visceral adipose tissue. Excess adiposity was defined as exceeding the 85th percentile for an adiposity indicator. Compositional regression analyses were used investigate the associations between movement behaviors and adiposity indicators and estimating "The Goldilocks Day." RESULTS: The movement behavior composition was associated with visceral adipose tissue (Fdf1 = 3,df2 = 317 = 3.672, p = 0.013) and fat mass percentage (Fdf1 = 3,df2 = 289 = 2.733, p = 0.044) among children and adolescents. The Goldilocks Day consisted of 8.5 h of sleep, 10.8 h of SB, 3.9 h of LPA, and 0.8 h of MVPA among children and 7.5 h of sleep, 12.4 h of SB, 3.6 h of LPA, and 0.5 h of MVPA among adolescents. CONCLUSION: Optimizing the time spent sleeping, and in sedentary and physical activities appears to be important in the prevention of excess adiposity.

• Keywords
• adiposity prevention, physical activity, sedentary behavior, sleep, time-use,
• MeSH
• Adiposity * MeSH
• Exercise MeSH
• Child MeSH
• Body Mass Index MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Adolescent MeSH
• Pediatric Obesity * epidemiology   prevention & control   MeSH
• Sleep MeSH
• Check Tag
• Child MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Adolescent MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH

• MeSH
• Cohort Studies MeSH
• Infant MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Longitudinal Studies MeSH
• Child, Preschool MeSH
• Prospective Studies MeSH
• Child Welfare * MeSH
• Social Environment * MeSH
• Socioeconomic Factors MeSH
• Pregnancy * MeSH
• Child Development * MeSH
• Check Tag
• Infant MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Child, Preschool MeSH
• Pregnancy * MeSH
• Female MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH
• Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't MeSH