Hälsa och fysisk aktivitet hos barn med rörelsenedsättning

Children like adults can benefit from physical activity. The recommendations for children are 60 minutes of activity at a moderate or high intensity daily. The physical activity can improve both the physical and mental health. Children with physical disability are disadvantaged when it comes to physical activity because of their disability. This can lead to poorer physical and mental health. The aim of this study was to chart how physical active children with physical disability are, investigate their health and to find if the children wanted to be more active. The design of the study was cross-sectional and included a questionnaire about physical activity and health. The participants were children with a physical disability at an age of 10-18 years. The results show that most of the participants are active at least once a week where they get sweaty or short-winded. The most important support for the participants to be active were adults close to the child. The biggest barrier were their own disabilities. There was no correlation between physical activity and health in this study. Several of the participants wanted to be more active. The activities that was most popular were daily activity, training in group and gym. In conclusion, children with physical disability are active but not as much as the recommendations says. Because adults close to the child, are the most important support for the children to be active, resources like information and education should be directed to the adults. With more knowledge about physical activity, adults close to the child can support the child to be more active