Association between religiosity, physical activity, and sedentary behavior in adolescents

Abstract

The aim of this cross-sectional study was to analyze the association between religiosity and physical activity level, sedentary behavior and enrollment in physical education classes among adolescent attended in public high school from Pernambuco State. Data from 4,207 students (14-19 years old) were obtained using the Global School-based Health Survey. Multiple and bivariate analyzes were performed. The adolescents who reported being Catholic were more likely to be insufficiently active (OR=1.39; 95%CI: 1.14, 1.71) and exposed to sedentary behavior during weekend days (OR=1.26; 95%CI: 1.03, 1.53) in comparison to those who reported ‘no religious affiliation’. In addition, Protestants showed 76% higher likelihood of no enrollment in physical education classes (OR=1.76; 95%CI: 1.36, 2.27). The religious practice was a factor associated to all dependent variables, except for the physical activity level. These results support that religiosity was associated with physical activity, sedentary behavior and enrollment in physical education classes.