Physical development

Physical development is the process of changing the morphological and functional properties of the human body in the process of its individual development. It is assessed by a set of morphological and functional properties that determine the reserve of physical strength, endurance and capacity of the body.

Physical development is assessed by anthropometry. Anthropometry is a set of methods for assessing physical development, including measuring length, body weight, head circumference, chest, shoulder, thigh, lower leg, waist, neck, as well as determining some physical parameters such as muscle strength, flexibility, coordination of movements, etc. .

Anthropometric data can be used to assess human health, as they reflect the morphological and functional properties of the body. For example, if a person is overweight, this may indicate problems with metabolism and overall health.

To assess physical development, various indices and coefficients are used, such as body mass index (BMI), which allows you to determine the presence of excess body weight or obesity. There are also special tables that indicate normal values ​​for different age groups and genders.

Overall, physical development is an important indicator of a person's health status and should be assessed regularly.

Physical development of children: basic patterns, formation and assessment

Physical development is the process of growth and formation of the human body, which occurs under the influence of biological, social, psychological, environmental and hereditary factors. Physical health is one of the key components of human health and is closely related to physical development.

Physical indicators by which the level of physical development of a child can be determined are presented in the “Program for assessing the physical development of children and adolescents.”

The main evaluation criterion is arithmetic average (group average) values, which are calculated using certain formulas after analyzing a set of indicators that reflect changes in certain properties of individual organs and systems or the child’s entire body. When analyzing anthropometric data, attention is paid to the main morphological characteristics considered in children of different age periods. The main evaluation criteria are the harmony of physical development and body weight indicators.

Physical development is assessed at least once a year. Initially, all children without absences are examined. In subsequent years, each subsequent child is examined after the first in each age group. The researcher should take measurements on the same days as for each healthy child. The timing of the examination should not coincide with physical exercises or sports activities, dates of vaccinations, therapeutic effects, excluding preliminary visits by children to a preventive and health care institution (MTCGU). After a comprehensive examination of each group, the physical development of the group as a whole is assessed. The magnitude of the difference between the growth and development indicators of the highest group with the group of its average level and the lowest is an assessment (qualitative indicator) of the degree of maladjustment in the group.

Each person has a different adaptive potential (way of adapting to environmental conditions), and for different characteristics - a different degree of endurance. Therefore, some children may have higher physical development indicators, while others may have lower group average values. These children are conventionally differentiated into three groups, denoting the reference level of physical development with the arithmetic mean. The first group, classified as subnormal, is characterized by physical development that is higher in certain parameters than the annual average, but below the arithmetic average of the current level for the corresponding age group, the second is characterized by a transition from an average level of development to below average with fluctuations in parameters within the standard deviation, the third, classified as below average, is characterized by an average statistically low deviation from the weighted average. The extreme 1st group consists of children with harmonious or disharmonious physical development with a pronounced advance of the current level in certain parameters. Children of the 2nd group must undergo a preventive health improvement course, regardless of the examination results obtained in the middle of the school year. In children from group 3, an in-depth study reveals various pathological conditions or chronic diseases that require sanatorium conditions for year-round therapeutic and health-improving effects. This group for sanatorium treatment often includes children with disabilities in physical development who need treatment for concomitant diseases (allergies, gastritis, skin diseases). But with good indicators of physical development, as well as with preservation of homeostatic functions of development, they are not included in this group.