Physical activity and screen time in children and adolescents in a medium size town in the South of Brazil

Abstract

Objective:To analyze the associations between sex and age with behaviour related to physical activity practice and sedentary behaviour in children and adolescents.Methods:A cross-sectional study with 480 (236 boys) subjects enrolled in a public school in the city of Londrina, in the south of Brazil, aged 8–17 years. Measures of physical activity, sports practice and screen times were obtained using the Physical Activity Questionnaire for Older Children. The Mann–Whitney U test was used to compare variables between boys and girls. The Chi squared test was used for categorical analysis and Poisson regression was used to identify prevalence.Results:Girls (69.6%; PR=1.05 [0.99–1.12]) spent more time with sedentary behaviour than boys (62.2%). Boys (80%; PR=0.95 [0.92–0.98]) were more physically active than girls (91%). Older students aged 13–17 showed a higher prevalence of physical inactivity (91.4%; PR=1.06 [1.02–1.10]) and time spent with sedentary behaviour of ≥2h/day (71.8%; PR=0.91 [0.85–0.97]) when compared to younger peers aged 8–12 (78.7 and 58.5%, respectively).Conclusions:The prevalence of physical inactivity was higher in girls. Older students spent more screen time in comparison to younger students.

Resemblance in physical activity levels: The Portuguese sibling study on growth, fitness, lifestyle, and health

“…Second, the use of questionnaires to obtain information about PA and TV viewing is susceptible to errors. Yet, self‐report instruments are very often used (Greca et al, ; Shang et al, ; Vallance et al, ). Additionally, the Baecke questionnaire is frequently used in Portuguese and Brazilian studies with valid and reliable results (Santos et al, ; Seabra et al, ; Silva et al, ).…”

“…Television (TV) time was estimated by questionnaire, where participants responded about time spent watching TV, and response options were: (1) <30 minutes; (2) 30 minutes‐1 hour; (3) 1 hour‐1:30 hours; (4) 1:30 hours‐2 hours; (5) >2 hours). Self‐reported information about sedentary behavior is commonly used in studies from different countries and/or cultures (Greca, Silva, & Loch, ; Shang et al, ; Vallance, Buman, Stevinson, & Lynch, ), as well as in studies with Portuguese samples (Pereira et al, ; Vasconcelos & Maia, )…”

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“…Evidências apontam que as meninas tendem a apresentar maior comportamento sedentário do que os meninos, o que pode favorecer uma maior aproximação do resultado do questionário com o valor do acelerômetro. Além disso, espera-se que conforme aumenta a faixa etária maior a capacidade cognitiva e melhor o nível de compreensão dos alunos para responder os questionários 26,27 .…”