Health knowledge and motivation in childhood is associated with better cardiovascular health
1
1 Menzies Institute for Medical Research, University of Tasmania, Hobart/Tasmania, Australia
2
2 School of Medicine, College of Health and Medicine, University of Tasmania, Hobart/Tasmania, Australia
3
3 The George Institute for Global Health, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia
4
4 Alliance for Research in Exercise, Nutrition and Activity (ARENA), Allied Health and Human Performance, University of South Australia, Adelaide, Australia
5
5 Murdoch Children’s Research Institute, Melbourne, Australia
6
6 Department of Clinical Physiology and Nuclear Medicine, Turku University Hospital, Turku, Finland
7
7 Nuffield Department of Women’s and Reproductive Health, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
Popul. Med. 2026;8(Supplement Supplement 1):
ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION:
Emerging evidence suggests that cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk originates in childhood. Strengthening early health knowledge and motivation related to cardiovascular health (CVH) may be critical for behaviour change yet this has not been thoroughly explored in childhood.
AIM:
To examine whether health knowledge and motivation related to CVH in childhood are associated with better CVH in both childhood (cross-sectional) and adulthood (longitudinal).
METHODS:
Anonymized data from the Childhood-Determinants-of-Adult-Health (CDAH) study were analyzed cross-sectionally using the 1985 Adolescent School Health and Fitness Survey (ASHFS) and longitudinally using CDAH-3 (2017–2019) data, 34-years follow-up. A health knowledge and motivation score was derived from a 15-item questionnaire and CVH was assessed using American Heart Association criteria. Associations between the health knowledge and motivation score (0-15) and CVH (0-100) were examined using adjusted linear and log-binomial regression models in RStudio (v4.1.0).
RESULTS:
Of the 8,497 children initially recruited exclusions for incomplete data yielded N=1,662 and N=967 for cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses respectively. In childhood, the mean age was 12.46±1.71 years, mean health motivation score was 13.20±1.17 and mean CVH score was 70.97±13.34. In childhood, 29%, 65%, and 6% were classified as having ideal, intermediate and poor CVH respectively. Higher childhood health knowledge and motivation score was significantly associated with higher CVH score and higher probability of ideal CVH, after adjustment for all covariates (RR: 1.27, 95% CI; 1.18-1.37, p < 0.05). Longitudinally, this association was not significant after adjustment for all covariates (RR: 1.03, 95% CI; 0.94- 1.13, p > 0.05).
CONCLUSIONS:
Childhood health knowledge and motivation is positively and independently associated with higher CVH in childhood but show no strong association in adulthood. Prevention strategies that develop CVH knowledge may support higher CVH in childhood however, further study is required to explore how this association can be sustained throughout adulthood.
Emerging evidence suggests that cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk originates in childhood. Strengthening early health knowledge and motivation related to cardiovascular health (CVH) may be critical for behaviour change yet this has not been thoroughly explored in childhood.
AIM:
To examine whether health knowledge and motivation related to CVH in childhood are associated with better CVH in both childhood (cross-sectional) and adulthood (longitudinal).
METHODS:
Anonymized data from the Childhood-Determinants-of-Adult-Health (CDAH) study were analyzed cross-sectionally using the 1985 Adolescent School Health and Fitness Survey (ASHFS) and longitudinally using CDAH-3 (2017–2019) data, 34-years follow-up. A health knowledge and motivation score was derived from a 15-item questionnaire and CVH was assessed using American Heart Association criteria. Associations between the health knowledge and motivation score (0-15) and CVH (0-100) were examined using adjusted linear and log-binomial regression models in RStudio (v4.1.0).
RESULTS:
Of the 8,497 children initially recruited exclusions for incomplete data yielded N=1,662 and N=967 for cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses respectively. In childhood, the mean age was 12.46±1.71 years, mean health motivation score was 13.20±1.17 and mean CVH score was 70.97±13.34. In childhood, 29%, 65%, and 6% were classified as having ideal, intermediate and poor CVH respectively. Higher childhood health knowledge and motivation score was significantly associated with higher CVH score and higher probability of ideal CVH, after adjustment for all covariates (RR: 1.27, 95% CI; 1.18-1.37, p < 0.05). Longitudinally, this association was not significant after adjustment for all covariates (RR: 1.03, 95% CI; 0.94- 1.13, p > 0.05).
CONCLUSIONS:
Childhood health knowledge and motivation is positively and independently associated with higher CVH in childhood but show no strong association in adulthood. Prevention strategies that develop CVH knowledge may support higher CVH in childhood however, further study is required to explore how this association can be sustained throughout adulthood.
| eISSN: | 2654-1459 |
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