Study of the Effects of Physical-Activity Practice and Adherence to the Mediterranean Diet on Emotional Intelligence in Elementary School Education Students
Eduardo Melguizo-Ibáñez,
José Luis Ubago-Jiménez,
Gabriel González-Valero,
Georgian Badicu,
Sameer Badri Al-Mhanna,
Pilar Puertas-Molero
Affiliations
Eduardo Melguizo-Ibáñez
Faculty of Education Sciences, Department of Didactics of Musical, Plastic and Corporal Expression, University of Granada, 18071 Granada, Spain
José Luis Ubago-Jiménez
Faculty of Education Sciences, Department of Didactics of Musical, Plastic and Corporal Expression, University of Granada, 18071 Granada, Spain
Gabriel González-Valero
Faculty of Education Sciences, Department of Didactics of Musical, Plastic and Corporal Expression, University of Granada, 18071 Granada, Spain
Georgian Badicu
Department of Physical Education and Special Motricity, Faculty of Physical Education and Mountain Sports, Transilvania University of Braşov, 500068 Braşov, Romania
Sameer Badri Al-Mhanna
Department of Physiology, School of Medical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian 16150, Kelantan, Malaysia
Pilar Puertas-Molero
Faculty of Education Sciences, Department of Didactics of Musical, Plastic and Corporal Expression, University of Granada, 18071 Granada, Spain
Research shows that regular physical exercise and a healthy lifestyle have a beneficial effect on the health of adolescents. Other studies have also shown that gender is also a determining factor when it comes to leading an active and healthy lifestyle. The aims of this study are (a) to develop a structural-equation model formed by the variables of emotional intelligence, physical-activity practice, and adherence to the Mediterranean diet and (b) to consider that model through a multigroup analysis. A descriptive, comparative, and cross-sectional study was carried out. The sample consisted of 567 primary school students. The KIDMED, PAQ-C, and TMMS-24 questionnaires were used for data collection. We found that there are differences in the effects of the practice of physical activity and adherence to the Mediterranean diet on the emotional domain. We also concluded that, during adolescence, gender is a key element in acquiring a healthy and active lifestyle.
