Disparities in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity among girls and overweight and obese schoolchildren during school- and out-of-school time

Abstract

BackgroundIncreasing physical activity (PA) during the school day and out-of-school time are critical strategies for preventing childhood obesity and improving overall health. The purpose of the present investigation was to examine schoolchildren’s volume and type of PA during school-time and out-of-school, compared to national recommendations and differences by sex and weight status.MethodsThis cross-sectional analysis included 517 3rd-5th grade schoolchildren from 13 New England elementary schools (October 2013-January 2014). Demographics were collected by parent questionnaire. Measured height and weight were used to categorize child weight status. Accelerometer data were collected over 7 days. PA was coded as total activity counts and minutes of sedentary, light, and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (SED, LPA, MVPA) during 1) school, 2) weekday out-of-school, 3) weekend, and 4) total daily time. Multivariable mixed models were used to examine associations between sex and weight status and total counts, SED, LPA, and MVPA, controlling for demographics, wear-time, and clustering within schools.Results453 participants (60.5 % girls; mean age 9.1 years; 30.5 % overweight/obese) had valid accelerometer wear time (≥3 days, ≥ 10 h/day). Few children achieved 60 min total daily (15.0 %) or school-time (8.0 %) MVPA recommendations. For all time-of-day categories, girls achieved fewer MVPA minutes than boys (p < .0001), and overweight/obese participants achieved fewer MVPA minutes than normal/underweight participants (p = 0.05). Minutes of LPA declined by grade-level (p < .05) and were lower in girls than boys during school-time only (p < .05).ConclusionDisparities in MVPA by sex and weight status across school and out-of-school time highlight the need for programs with equitable reach.

Are children participating in a quasi-experimental education outside the classroom intervention more physically active?

“…While our findings suggest that EOtC may be a cost-effective, supplementary strategy for creating a more active and varied school day, boys spent approximately double the amount of time in MVPA compared to girls in the EOtC group, suggesting that EOtC may contribute to the gap in levels of PA between sexes that is already well established in the literature [32–34]. This gap between sexes increases during the transition from childhood to adolescence as girls’ MVPA declines more, with onset at younger age and from a lower starting point at onset, compared to boys’ [35].…”

Changes in compliance with school‐based physical activity recommendations in Spanish youth: The UP&DOWN longitudinal study

“…Children and adolescents are recommended to engage in at least 60 minutes of moderate‐to‐vigorous PA (MVPA) per day . However, more than half of children and adolescents worldwide do not meet this recommendation . Spain also has this problem, and it especially affects Spanish adolescent girls, among which only 26% are physically active …”

“…It was also suggested that youths should spend 50% of recess (ie, time periods of noncurricular activities in school) and physical education classes (PEC) total time in MVPA . In this context, previous studies have reported a compliance rate of less than 25% with the school hour PA recommendation even lower than the percentage of compliance for the MVPA during the whole day, and showed that less than 15% of students satisfied the MVPA recommendations during recess and PEC …”

The Impact of School Bullying on Physical Activity in Overweight Youth: Exploring Race and Ethnic Differences

“…Thus, parental support would be more impactful on internalizing problems for overweight/obese white American youth. Indeed, African American youth are more tolerant of a wider range of body sizes . The question remains whether African American youth and their families experience more stress‐related bullying and weight‐related bullying, specifically.…”