Physical activity patterns among high school students of Ponta Grossa, PR

Abstract

Physical activity (PA) during adolescence promotes health benefits and can be an indicator of PA in adulthood. This study aims to identify physical activity patterns in a sample of 1,129 students (58.5% of girls), aged between 14 and 18 years, from High Schools of Ponta Grossa, PR. In this study, the following data were collected: sociodemographic information, weight, height, sedentary behavior, active commuting to school, moderate to vigorous PA (MVPA), and participation in physical education (PE) classes. For data analysis we used absolute and relative frequency distribution and the chi-square test for proportions. Logistic regression analysis was used to assess the association between different contexts of PA and the independent variables. Statistical calculations were developed by the SPSS 16.0 program and a significance level of p <0.05 was adopted. The prevalence of overweight was 19.1% (CI=14.7- 29.8%), higher among boys (26.3% versus 14.1%: p <0.01). Most of the students are active regarding commuting to school (58.8%), MVPA (71%) and PE classes (85.5%), and present sedentary behavior that lasts between 1 and 4 hours (55.2%) per day. There was an association between participating in PE classes and active commuting to school (p <0.05). Girls and adolescents aged 17-18 years participate less in PE classes. Teenagers who do not work are the ones who least practice MVPA. It is concluded that special attention should be given to these groups, promoting intervention programs and encouraging the practice of PA.