ABSTRACT
In recent decades, several studies have shown that inadequate cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) levels have an inverse association with independent risk factors for chronic diseases and may lead to premature death in adults (Blair et al., 1998; Lamonte et al., 2005). In the case of children and adolescents, it was also observed that low CRF levels are strongly associated with the group of risk factors for cardiovascular disease such as high blood pressure, type-II diabetes, dyslipidaemia and body fat, regardless of sex and age (Andersen et al., 2007). In addition, a worldwide increase in the overweight and obesity trend in children and adolescents has been observed, increasing the risk of morbidities that are associated with excess body weight and with the fact that this profile remains until adult age (Janssen et al., 2005). Thus, the objective of this study was to investigate the secular trend of nutritional status and cardiorespiratory fitness indicators in Brazilian children between 2002 and 2010.
