Temporal trends in the cardiorespiratory fitness of children and adolescents representing 19 high-income and upper middle-income countries between 1981 and 2014

Abstract

There has been a substantial decline in CRF since 1981, which is suggestive of a meaningful decline in population health. However, the international trend in CRF has not followed the anticipated trajectory, diminishing and stabilising with negligible change since 2000. CRF data are needed from children in low-income and middle-income countries to more confidently determine true international trends and determine whether temporal trends are similar to those observed in high-income and upper middle-income countries.

Cardiorespiratory and muscular fitness in young adult Finnish men between 2003 and 2015

“…No clear trends were observed in muscular fitness; however, the lowest values were noticed in 2003. The present study findings are in line and confirmatory to the findings of previous very few studies in 5‐10 years younger adult men in Finland and Switzerland . Based on the present study and the previous study findings, it seems that the decreasing trend in physical fitness is diminishing during the recent decades, and interestingly, the greatest decline in cardiorespiratory fitness seems to have occurred some decades ago .…”

“…Based on the present study and the previous study findings, it seems that the decreasing trend in physical fitness is diminishing during the recent decades, and interestingly, the greatest decline in cardiorespiratory fitness seems to have occurred some decades ago . Similar diminishing decreased trends have also been observed in children during the last two decades …”

“…have observed a decline in cardiorespiratory fitness 12% from 1979 to 2004 . Interestingly, the decline in cardiorespiratory fitness in Finnish young men seems to show a diminishing and stabilizing trend over the last decade, similar to some of the findings reported in children . Moreover, the recent results observed in Swiss conscripts, representing a population‐based sample of young adult Swiss men aged 18‐21 years, showed no difference in cardiorespiratory fitness during 2006‐2015 …”

Is it time to give population health surveillance a late fitness test?

“…Tomkinson et al 1 report temporal trends in aerobic fitness of 1 142 026 children aged 7–19 years old using estimates from the 20 m shuttle run. The data show continued declines in fitness described as ‘ indicative of declines in population health ’.…”

Poverty and reductions in fitness levels in children and adolescents in upper middle-income countries

“…As we and others have shown—social, emotional, cognitive and physical development in childhood and adolescence tracks through to later life 1 2. The paper by Tomkinson and colleagues3 examined trends in cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) levels in childhood and adolescence. It is an important piece of work because poor fitness levels in adolescence are significantly linked with higher all-cause mortality rates later in life4 and because, as the authors illustrate in their comprehensive study, CRF fitness levels in children and adolescents in high-income and high-middle-income countries have significantly declined since the 1980s.…”