Physical activity and sedentary behaviors of children in family child care homes: Are there opportunities for improvement?

Purpose: Many children attend family child care homes (FCCHs), an important setting to influence children’s physical activity (PA) and sedentary behavior (SB). This study assessed children’s PA and SB while in FCCHs, characteristics of the FCCH PA environment, and relationships between the environment and child PA and SB. Method: Children ages 1.5–4.0 years (n = 495) were recruited from 165 FCCHs in North Carolina. Children’s moderate to vigorous PA and SB were measured via accelerometry for 3 days. FCCH PA environments were assessed over 2 days using the Environment and Policy Assessment and Observation for FCCHs. Ten subscores and an overall PA environment score (possible range: 0–30) were calculated; higher scores indicate better quality. Results: Children accumulated 30 (13) minutes of moderate to vigorous PA and 143 (42) minutes of SB in FCCHs daily. FCCHs scored low on the Environment and Policy Assessment and Observation for FCCHs, with an average overall score of 13 (2). FCCHs scored highest on screen time and screen time practices subscores, and lowest on PA education/professional development and PA policy subscores. Although no statistically significant associations were observed, some large Cohen d effect sizes were noted (eg, outdoor playtime subscore and moderate to vigorous PA). Conclusions: This study highlights opportunities to improve FCCHs and increase children’s behaviors (eg, providing adequate time and outdoor play spaces).