SynthesisBMC public health2025
Effects of physical activity interventions on physical fitness in preschool children: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials and dose-response study.
Synthesis in BMC public health, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
6 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Lifestyle interventions and 24-hour movement behaviors in preschool children: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Frontiers in public health · 2026Pooled it
- Effects of a teacher-led social cognitive theory-based multicomponent movement education program on preschoolers' fundamental movement skills and physical activity: the PA-REALITY cluster-randomized controlled trial.The international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity · 2025Trial
- Associations between physical activity and physical fitness in preschool children: gender and age differences.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Effects of a 10-Week Wushu Program on Static, Dynamic, and Dual-Task Balance and Physical Fitness in Preschool Children.Sports (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- The Relationship Between Physical Literacy and Physical Fitness in Preschool-Aged Children.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Motor engagement, physical activity intensity, and enjoyment in pre-school children during different game-based formats.Scientific reports · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
8 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroudTo evaluate the effects of chronic physical activity (PA) interventions on physical fitness (PF) in preschool children and to determine the optimal weekly PA dose for improving specific fitness components through meta-analysis and dose-response analysis.
methodsLiterature searches were conducted in PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials from database inception to January 4, 2025. Eligible randomized controlled trials (RCTs) involved healthy children aged 3-7 years, applied PA interventions lasting ≥ 4 weeks, and assessed at least one PF component, including muscular strength, cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF), flexibility, coordination, or balance. Meta-analyses used random-effects models to calculate standardized mean differences (SMDs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Bayesian dose-response models with restricted cubic splines were used to explore non-linear associations.
resultsFourteen RCTs (n = 3376) were included. PA interventions significantly improved overall PF (SMD = 0.30; 95% CI: 0.22-0.38), as well as upper muscle strength (SMD = 0.30), lower muscle strength (SMD = 0.29), flexibility (SMD = 0.27), CRF (SMD = 0.29), coordination (SMD = 0.54), and static balance (SMD = 0.38). Dose-response analysis revealed optimal weekly doses of 270 min for overall PF, 260 min for lower muscle strength, 190 min for upper muscle strength and flexibility, 300 min for coordination, and 180 min for static balance. CRF improved linearly up to 380 min/week. Subgroup analyses indicated that session frequency, length, and total duration moderated intervention effects.
conclusionsPA interventions effectively improve physical fitness in preschool children. Optimal weekly doses range from 180 to 380 min, depending on the fitness component. Intervention effectiveness is further moderated by session frequency, duration, and total program length, highlighting the need for tailored PA strategies targeting specific physical fitness outcomes in early childhood. PROSPERO REGISTRATION: CRD42025639632.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.