Scoping review of adult-oriented outdoor play publications in Canada. / Examen de la portée des publications sur le jeu à l'extérieur chez les adultes au Canada.

INTRODUCTION: Since 2015, there has been growing interest in Canada and beyond on the benefits of outdoor play for physical, emotional, social and environmental health, wellbeing and development, for adults as well as children and youth. METHODS: This scoping review aims to answer the question, "How, and in what context, is adult-oriented outdoor play being studied in Canada?" We conducted an electronic search for peer-reviewed articles on outdoor play published in English or French after September 2015 by authors from Canadian institutions or about Canadian adults. The 224 retrieved articles were organized according to eight priorities: health, well-being and development; outdoor play environments; safety and outdoor play; cross-sectoral connections; equity, diversity and inclusion; professional development; Indigenous Peoples and land-based outdoor play; and COVID-19. We tallied the study designs and measurement methods used. RESULTS: The most common priority was outdoor play environments; the least common were COVID-19 and Indigenous Peoples and land-based outdoor play. Cross-sectional studies were the most common; no rapid reviews were identified. Sample sizes varied from one auto-ethnographic reflection to 147 000 zoo visitor datapoints. More studies used subjective than objective measurement methods. Environmental health was the most common outcome and mental/emotional development was the least. CONCLUSION: There has been a staggering amount of articles published on adult-oriented outdoor play in Canada since 2015. Knowledge gaps remain in the relationship between outdoor play and adult mental/emotional development; the connections between environmental health and Indigenous cultures and traditions; and how to balance promoting outdoor unstructured play with protecting and preserving natural spaces.

Scoping review of children's and youth's outdoor play publications in Canada. / Examen de la portée des publications sur le jeu à l'extérieur chez les enfants et les jeunes au Canada.

INTRODUCTION: Since 2015, interest in the benefits of outdoor play for physical, emotional, social and environmental health, well-being and development has been growing in Canada and elsewhere. METHODS: This scoping review aims to answer the question, "How, and in what context, is children's and youth's outdoor play being studied in Canada?" Included were studies of any type on outdoor play published after September 2015 in English or French by authors from Canadian institutions or assessing Canadian children and/or youth. Articles retrieved from MEDLINE, CINAHL and Scopus by March 2021 were organized according to eight priority areas: health, well-being and development; outdoor play environments; safety and outdoor play; cross-sectoral connections; equity, diversity and inclusion; professional development; Indigenous Peoples and land-based outdoor play; and COVID-19. Within each priority, study design and measurement method were tallied. RESULTS: Of the 275 articles included, the most common priority area was health, wellbeing and development (n = 239). The least common priority areas were COVID-19 (n = 9) and Indigenous Peoples and land-based outdoor play (n = 14). Cross-sectional studies were the most common; the least common were rapid reviews. Sample sizes varied from one parent's reflections to 999 951 data points from health databases. More studies used subjective than objective measurement methods. Across priorities, physical health was the most examined outcome, and mental/emotional development the least. CONCLUSION: A wealth of knowledge on outdoor play in Canada has been produced since 2015. Further research is needed on the relationship between outdoor play and mental/emotional development among children and youth.

Health-Related Criterion-Referenced Cut-Points for Cardiorespiratory Fitness Among Youth: A Systematic Review.

BACKGROUND: Cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF), which reflects the overall aerobic capacity of the cardiovascular, respiratory, and muscular systems, is significantly related to health among youth. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this systematic review was to identify health-related criterion-referenced cut-points for CRF among youth aged 5-17 years. METHODS: A systematic search of two electronic databases (MEDLINE and SPORTDiscus) was conducted in September 2020. Only peer-reviewed studies that developed health-related criterion-referenced cut-points for CRF among youth were eligible provided they included (1) youth aged 5-17 years from the general population; (2) at least one quantitative assessment of CRF (e.g., peak oxygen uptake [[Formula: see text]O2peak]); (3) at least one quantitative assessment of health (e.g., cardiometabolic risk); (4) a criterion for health; and (5) a quantitative analysis (e.g., receiver operating characteristic [ROC] curve) of at least one health-related cut-point for CRF. A narrative synthesis was used to describe the results of the included studies. RESULTS: Collectively, 29 included studies developed health-related criterion-referenced cut-points for CRF among 193,311 youth from 23 countries. CRF cut-points, expressed as [Formula: see text]O2peak, estimated using the 20-m shuttle run test, demonstrated high discriminatory ability (median area under the curve [AUC] ≥ 0.71) for both cardiometabolic and obesity risk. Cut-points derived from maximal cycle-ergometer tests demonstrated moderate discriminatory ability (median AUC 0.64-0.70) for cardiometabolic risk, and low discriminatory ability for early subclinical atherosclerosis (median AUC 0.56-0.63). Cut-points for CRF using submaximal treadmill exercise testing demonstrated high discriminatory ability for cardiometabolic risk, but only moderate discriminatory ability for obesity risk. CRF cut-points estimated using submaximal step testing demonstrated high discriminatory ability for cardiometabolic risk and moderate discriminatory ability for high blood pressure, while those for the 9-min walk/run test demonstrated moderate-to-high discriminatory ability for obesity risk. Collectively, CRF cut-points, expressed as [Formula: see text]O2peak, demonstrated moderate-to-high discriminatory ability (median AUC ≥ 0.64) for cardiometabolic risk, obesity risk, and high blood pressure. CONCLUSIONS: Currently, there is too wide a range of health-related criterion-referenced cut-points for CRF among youth to suggest universal age- and sex-specific thresholds. To further inform the development of universal cut-points, there is a need for additional research, using standardized testing protocols and health-risk definitions, that examines health-related criterion-referenced cut-points for CRF that are age, sex, and culturally diverse. CLINICAL TRIALS REGISTRATION: PROSPERO registration number: CRD42020207458.