Baltic Adolescents’ Health Behaviour: An International Comparison

Abstract

The aim of the study is to assess the time trends in Baltic adolescents’ physical activity, dietary habits and BMI and compare the results with the average of the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) study. The research used HBSC data from 2006 to 2018. The total number of respondents was 17,458 in Estonia, 18,416 in Latvia and 20,466 in Lithuania. A logistic regression analysis was applied to estimate time trends in health behaviour indicators. The results demonstrated that Baltic adolescents’ physical activity has declined over the study years, except for Lithuanian girls. The prevalence of overweight adolescents has significantly increased since 2006. Dietary habits improved in all three Baltic countries, as consumption of vegetables increased, and soft drink consumption decreased during this time period. This research shows that a nationwide, highly representative study with health behaviour indicators enables us to assess regional differences compared to the HBSC average. The prevalence of overweight and obese adolescents in the Baltic countries has increased and moved closer to the HBSC average. Although Baltic adolescents’ daily vegetable consumption has increased over the last decade, it is still lower than the HBSC average.

The Influence of Previous Lifestyle on Occupational Physical Fitness in the Context of Military Service

“…Similar to other countries [8], the behavior of Estonian schoolchildren has mostly become less healthy [9]. When the health behavior indicators of young people in the population are low and health promotion initiatives are not sufficient, it is very problematic to find young people with suitable health for military service.…”

“…Along with BMI, low levels of physical activity have been identified as a potential threat to US national security, as they affect military recruitment [8]. During the last decade, only 17-21% of Estonian adolescent boys have been active daily, with moderate to vigorous physical activity for at least 60 min a day [9]. Compared to other countries in the European region [10], the physical activity of Estonian youth is below average level.…”

“…However, there is a reason to believe that since the health of young men in the population has not significantly improved, the desire of young men to contribute to national defense and acquire relevant skills has increased due to the security situation arising from a neighboring country. Despite the vast amount of knowledge available that states that adolescents partaking in regular physical activity are more likely to adopt a healthy and balanced diet that helps to improve physical and personal well-being, adolescents' physical activity has gradually decreased [9].…”