Vicinity of Schools, But Not of Residences, Seems to Regulate Physical and Sports Activities of 13-Year-Old Teenagers in a South European Setting

• Type: Article in International Scientific Journal
• Date: 2017

Authors

Magalhães, A (Author) Other; Ramos E (Author) FMUP; Pina, MF (Author) Other

Journal

Title: Journal of Physical Activity & Health

Vol. 14 No. 6

Pages: 67-75

ISSN: 1543-3080

Publisher: Human Kinetics Publishers, Inc.

Other information

Authenticus ID: P-00T-3RG

DOI: 10.1123/jpah.2015-0735

Abstract (EN): <jats:sec sec-type="background"><jats:title>Background:</jats:title><jats:p>Proximity to urban green spaces (UGS) and open sports spaces (OSS) benefits health, promotes physical activity (PA) and sports practice (SP).</jats:p></jats:sec><jats:sec sec-type="objective"><jats:title>Objective:</jats:title><jats:p>Analyze the association between PA or SP according to distances between UGS or OSS and teenagers¿ residences or schools.</jats:p></jats:sec><jats:sec sec-type="methods"><jats:title>Methods:</jats:title><jats:p>We evaluated 1333 (53.9% girls) teenagers (13 years old) living and studying in Porto, Portugal (EPITeen cohort). PA was classified as light or moderate/vigorous. Distances were the shortest routes from residences or schools to UGS/OSS, and classified in ¿250 m; >250 m to ¿500 m; >500 m to ¿750 m; >750 m. Chi-square test and chi-square for trends were used to compare proportions; associations were measured using logistic regression, through odds ratio and 95% confidence intervals, adjusting to BMI and parental education.</jats:p></jats:sec><jats:sec sec-type="results"><jats:title>Results:</jats:title><jats:p>Regarding vicinity¿ of schools, the prevalence of moderate/vigorous PA among boys, decreases as distances to OSS increases. For girls, the prevalence of sports decreases as distances to UGS increase. For boys, we found an association between moderate/vigorous PA and proximity to OSS in the vicinity of schools: considering ¿250 m as reference, the odds of moderate/vigorous PA is 0.20 (0.06¿0.63) for >250 m to ¿500 m; 0.21 (0.07¿0.61) for >500 m to ¿750 m and 0.19 (0.06¿0.58) for >750 m.</jats:p></jats:sec><jats:sec sec-type="conclusion"><jats:title>Conclusion:</jats:title><jats:p>Vicinities of schools seem to influence teenagers to be more physically active and increase sports participation.</jats:p></jats:sec>

Language: English

Type (Professor's evaluation): Scientific