Research

11 pages, 893 KiB

Open AccessArticle

An Exploration of Domain-Specific Sedentary Behaviors in College Students by Lifestyle Factors and Sociodemographics

by Chelsea Carpenter, Sang-Eun Byun, Gabrielle Turner-McGrievy and Delia West

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(18), 9930; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/ijerph18189930 - 21 Sep 2021

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 3605

Abstract

College students exhibit high levels of sedentary time and/or poor lifestyle factors (e.g., poor sleep, stress, physical inactivity). It is unknown; however, in what domains college students spend their sedentary time and whether there are associations between sedentary time and these lifestyle factors. [...] Read more.

College students exhibit high levels of sedentary time and/or poor lifestyle factors (e.g., poor sleep, stress, physical inactivity). It is unknown; however, in what domains college students spend their sedentary time and whether there are associations between sedentary time and these lifestyle factors. This study examined sedentary behavior of college students by domains, current lifestyle factors and sociodemographics. Undergraduates (n = 272, M age = 20 years, 79% female) self-reported their sedentary behavior, sleep, stress, physical activity, anthropometrics and sociodemographics. Sedentary time was categorized as: total, recreational screen, education and social. Students reported spending > 12 h of their day sedentary on average, with over a third of this time spent in recreational screen time. All categories of sedentary time were significantly correlated with body mass index, and both total sedentary time and screen time were significantly correlated with sleep score, with poorer sleep quality associated with greater sedentary time. Physical activity was negatively correlated with social sedentary time only. Subgroups with elevated sedentary time included minority students, those with low parental education and students with overweight/obesity. Given the negative health impacts of sedentary behavior, college students would likely benefit from interventions tailored to this population which target reducing sedentary time, particularly recreational screen time. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Psychosocial and Environmental Correlates of Physical Activity in Youth and Childhood)

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23 pages, 2135 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Fostering Holistic Development with a Designed Multisport Intervention in Physical Education: A Class-Randomized Cross-Over Trial

by Giancarlo Condello, Emiliano Mazzoli, Ilaria Masci, Antonio De Fano, Tal Dotan Ben-Soussan, Rosalba Marchetti and Caterina Pesce

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(18), 9871; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/ijerph18189871 - 19 Sep 2021

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 4658

Abstract

Physical education (PE) is acknowledged as a relevant context for holistic child and youth development promotion. However, interventional research mostly builds on individual theories focused on specific outcome domains. This study presents a multisport enriched PE intervention that capitalizes on the intersection of [...] Read more.

Physical education (PE) is acknowledged as a relevant context for holistic child and youth development promotion. However, interventional research mostly builds on individual theories focused on specific outcome domains. This study presents a multisport enriched PE intervention that capitalizes on the intersection of different theory-based approaches to motor, cognitive and socio-emotional skills development promotion. With a cross-over design, 181 fifth graders, coming from a past class-randomized trial of enriched or traditional PE in their 1st–3rd grade, were stratified (based on their previous PE experience) and class-randomized to multisport enriched PE or control group. They completed pre-post assessments in motor and sport skills, cool (inhibition, working memory) and hot (decision making) executive functions, prosocial (empathy, cooperation) and antisocial (quick-temperedness, disruptiveness) behaviors. Children in the enriched PE group showed advantages in motor and prosocial skills after the intervention, which were linked by a mediation path, and an interactive effect of past and actual PE experience on decision making but no differential effects on other variables. The results suggest that a PE intervention designed with an integrative theory base, although not allowing disentangling the contribution of individual components to its efficacy, may help pursue benefits in motor and non-motor domains relevant to whole-child development. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Psychosocial and Environmental Correlates of Physical Activity in Youth and Childhood)

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14 pages, 377 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Urban Green Spaces, Greenness Exposure and Species Richness in Residential Environments and Relations with Physical Activity and BMI in Portuguese Adolescents

by Juliana Melo, Ana Isabel Ribeiro, Susana Aznar, Andreia Pizarro and Maria Paula Santos

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(12), 6588; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/ijerph18126588 - 18 Jun 2021

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 3113

Abstract

Environmental factors play an important role in obesity-related behaviors. Evidence indicates significant associations between weight and urban green spaces in adults, but it is not clear whether this relationship applies to adolescents. Therefore, our aim was to determine the associations between urban green [...] Read more.

Environmental factors play an important role in obesity-related behaviors. Evidence indicates significant associations between weight and urban green spaces in adults, but it is not clear whether this relationship applies to adolescents. Therefore, our aim was to determine the associations between urban green spaces, greenness exposure and species richness in residential environments with physical activity and body mass index. Sixty-two adolescents between 12 and 18 years of age answered a self-administered questionnaire, providing information on height, weight, age, sex and home address. Data on socioeconomic deprivation were obtained from the European Index of Deprivation for Small Portuguese Areas. Physical activity levels were assessed using accelerometers. Urban green space counts and the normalized difference vegetation index values were measured using buffers along the roads with distances of 300, 500, 1000 and 1500 m from each participant’s residence. To quantify the species richness, the species richness index was used. Linear regression models were fitted to analyze whether urban green spaces, exposure to green spaces and species richness counts for each distance were associated with physical activity and self-reported body mass index. We did not find significant associations between the independent variables and the probability of overweight or obesity. The relationship between environmental variables, adolescents’ physical activity and body weight seems to be complex and further studies may contribute to better understanding of the topic. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Psychosocial and Environmental Correlates of Physical Activity in Youth and Childhood)

22 pages, 2336 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Children’s Active School Travel: Examining the Combined Perceived and Objective Built-Environment Factors from Space Syntax

by Ayse Ozbil, Demet Yesiltepe, Gorsev Argin and Greg Rybarczyk

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(1), 286; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/ijerph18010286 - 02 Jan 2021

Cited by 26 | Viewed by 5099

Abstract

Increasing active school travel (AST) among children may provide the required level of daily physical activity and reduce the prevalence of obesity. Despite efforts to promote this mode, recent evidence shows that AST rates continue to decrease in suburban and urban areas alike. [...] Read more.

Increasing active school travel (AST) among children may provide the required level of daily physical activity and reduce the prevalence of obesity. Despite efforts to promote this mode, recent evidence shows that AST rates continue to decrease in suburban and urban areas alike. The aim of this research study, therefore, is to facilitate our understanding of how objective and perceived factors near the home influence children’s AST in an understudied city, İstanbul, Turkey. Using data from a cross-sectional sample of students aged 12–14 from 20 elementary schools (n = 1802) and consenting parents (n = 843), we applied a nominal logistic regression model to highlight important predictors of AST. The findings showed that street network connectivity (as measured by two novel space syntax measures, metric reach and directional reach) was the main deciding factor for active commuting to school, while parents’ perceptions of condition of sidewalks and shade-casting street trees were moderately significant factors associated with AST. Overall, this study demonstrated the significance of spatial structure of street network around the homes in the potential for encouraging AST, and more importantly, the need to consider objective and perceived environmental attributes when strategizing means to increase this mode choice and reduce ill-health among children. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Psychosocial and Environmental Correlates of Physical Activity in Youth and Childhood)

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11 pages, 1052 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Multi-Year Examination of School-Based Programs in Preventing Childhood Obesity: A Case of a State Policy in the U.S.

by Chang-Yong Jang, Nam-Gyeong Gim, Yoonhee Kim and TaeEung Kim

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2020, 17(24), 9425; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/ijerph17249425 - 16 Dec 2020

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2904

Abstract

This study examined the association between the obesogenic factors and the risk of suffering from weight excess in school-based state programs regarding physical activity, physical education, nutrition standards, and nutrition education in preventing childhood obesity. Data were drawn from the 1999–2011 Youth Risk [...] Read more.

This study examined the association between the obesogenic factors and the risk of suffering from weight excess in school-based state programs regarding physical activity, physical education, nutrition standards, and nutrition education in preventing childhood obesity. Data were drawn from the 1999–2011 Youth Risk Behavior Survey in the State of Mississippi (N = 8862; grades 9–12). Logistic regression with year-fixed effects was performed to capture the influence of the legislation on teenage obesity, controlling for demographics and nutrition- and physical activity-related behaviors. The age-, sex-, and ethnicity-adjusted mean of the body mass index had reduced since 2007 (year 1999: 23.52; year 2001: 23.53; year 2003: 23.76; year 2007: 24.26; year 2009: 24.29; and year 2011: 23.91). The legislation was significantly associated with a decreased likelihood of being overweight (year 2007, odds ratio (OR) = 0.686; year 2009, OR = 0.739; and year 2011, OR = 0.760; all p < 0.01). Children who were more sedentary, more frequently fasted to lose weight, and were less physically active and likelier to be overweight (OR = 1.05, 1.37, and 0.97, respectively; all p < 0.05), as were African-American children (OR = 0.64; p < 0.05) and female students (OR = 1.59; p < 0.05). In conclusion, schools are among the most easily modifiable settings for preventing childhood obesity and reducing its prevalence, with the implementation of physical activity and nutritional policies. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Psychosocial and Environmental Correlates of Physical Activity in Youth and Childhood)

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17 pages, 860 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Sociodemographic and Built Environment Associates of Travel to School by Car among New Zealand Adolescents: Meta-Analysis

by Sandra Mandic, Erika Ikeda, Tom Stewart, Nicholas Garrett, Debbie Hopkins, Jennifer S. Mindell, El Shadan Tautolo and Melody Smith

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2020, 17(23), 9138; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/ijerph17239138 - 07 Dec 2020

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 3516

Abstract

Travelling to school by car diminishes opportunities for physical activity and contributes to traffic congestion and associated noise and air pollution. This meta-analysis examined sociodemographic characteristics and built environment associates of travelling to school by car compared to using active transport among New [...] Read more.

Travelling to school by car diminishes opportunities for physical activity and contributes to traffic congestion and associated noise and air pollution. This meta-analysis examined sociodemographic characteristics and built environment associates of travelling to school by car compared to using active transport among New Zealand (NZ) adolescents. Four NZ studies (2163 adolescents) provided data on participants’ mode of travel to school, individual and school sociodemographic characteristics, distance to school and home-neighbourhood built-environment features. A one-step meta-analysis using individual participant data was performed in SAS. A final multivariable model was developed using stepwise logistic regression. Overall, 60.6% of participants travelled to school by car. When compared with active transport, travelling to school by car was positively associated with distance to school. Participants residing in neighbourhoods with high intersection density and attending medium deprivation schools were less likely to travel to school by car compared with their counterparts. Distance to school, school level deprivation and low home neighbourhood intersection density are associated with higher likelihood of car travel to school compared with active transport among NZ adolescents. Comprehensive interventions focusing on both social and built environment factors are needed to reduce car travel to school. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Psychosocial and Environmental Correlates of Physical Activity in Youth and Childhood)

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12 pages, 1658 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Changes in Markers of Oxidative Stress and α-Amylase in Saliva of Children Associated with a Tennis Competition

by José María Giménez-Egido, Raquel Hernández-García, Damián Escribano, Silvia Martínez-Subiela, Gema Torres-Luque, Enrique Ortega-Toro and José Joaquín Cerón

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2020, 17(17), 6269; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/ijerph17176269 - 28 Aug 2020

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2322

Abstract

The purpose of this paper was to analyze the changes caused by a one-day tennis tournament in biomarkers of oxidative stress and α-amylase in saliva in children. The sample was 20 male active children with the following characteristics: (a) age of players = [...] Read more.

The purpose of this paper was to analyze the changes caused by a one-day tennis tournament in biomarkers of oxidative stress and α-amylase in saliva in children. The sample was 20 male active children with the following characteristics: (a) age of players = 9.46 ± 0.66 years; (b) weight = 34.8 ± 6.5 kg; (c) height = 136.0 ± 7.9 cm; (d) mean weekly training tennis = 2.9 ± 1.0 h. The tennis competition ran for one day, with four matches for each player. Data were taken from the average duration per match and the rating of perceived exertion (RPE). Four biomarkers of antioxidant status: uric acid (AU), Trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC), ferric reducing ability of saliva (FRAS, cupric reducing antioxidant capacity (CUPRAC) and salivary alpha-amylase (sAA) as a biomarker of psychological stress were measured in saliva. The time points were baseline (at home before the tournament), pre-competition (immediately before the first match) and post-match (after each match) measurements. The four biomarkers of antioxidant status showed a similar dynamic with lower values at baseline and a progressive increase during the four matches. Overall one-day tennis competition in children showed a tendency to increase antioxidant biomarkers in saliva. In addition, there was an increase in pre-competition sAA possibly associated with psychological stress. Further studies about the possible physiological implications of these findings should be performed in the future. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Psychosocial and Environmental Correlates of Physical Activity in Youth and Childhood)

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11 pages, 475 KiB

Open AccessArticle

School and Family Environment is Positively Associated with Extracurricular Physical Activity Practice among 8 to 16 Years Old School Boys and Girls

by Cristina Romero-Blanco, Alberto Dorado-Suárez, Fabio Jiménez-Zazo, Nuria Castro-Lemus and Susana Aznar

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2020, 17(15), 5371; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/ijerph17155371 - 26 Jul 2020

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 2907

Abstract

Extracurricular physical activity in children and adolescents can help achieve compliance with the World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations for physical activity. The purpose of this study was to evaluate factors in school and family environments of children and adolescents in Spain that could [...] Read more.

Extracurricular physical activity in children and adolescents can help achieve compliance with the World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations for physical activity. The purpose of this study was to evaluate factors in school and family environments of children and adolescents in Spain that could be related to the practice of extracurricular physical activity. Multistage random cluster sampling was conducted to include 128 schools with the participation of 10,096 students between the ages of 7 and 16. Participants completed the survey of sports habits designed by the National Sports Council. The results revealed a higher participation in extracurricular sports activities among boys (OR: 1.67 (1.5–1.9)) and students in primary education (up to 12 years old) (OR: 1.8 (1.7–2.0)). Likewise, a statistically significant relationship (p < 0.005) was observed between families where another family member practiced sports and lower number of screen time hours, improved academic performance, and better self-perceived health. Participation of children and adolescents in extracurricular sports activities seems to be associated with their immediate environment. It is therefore essential to emphasize the importance of establishing physical activity habits from an early age in family and school environments. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Psychosocial and Environmental Correlates of Physical Activity in Youth and Childhood)

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