Physical activity awareness of European adolescents: The HELENA study |
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Authors: | Jérémy Vanhelst Laurent Béghin Alain Duhamel Stefaan De Henauw Jonatan R Ruiz Anthony Kafatos |
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Institution: | 1. Univ. Lille, Inserm, CHU Lille, UMR995 - LIRIC - Lille Inflammation Research International Center, F-59000 Lille, France;2. Univ. Lille, Inserm, CHU Lille, CIC 1403 - Centre d'investigation clinique, F-59000 Lille, France;3. Univ. Lille, CHU Lille, EA 2694 - Sante publique: epidemiologie et qualite des soins, F-59000 Lille, France;4. Department of Movement and Sport Sciences, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium;5. PROFITH “PROmoting FITness and Health through physical activity” research group. Department of Physical Education and Sport, Faculty of Sport Sciences, University of Granada, Granada, Spain;6. Preventive Medicine and Nutrition Clinic, Department of Social Medicine, University of Crete School of Medicine, Heraklion, Crete, Greece |
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Abstract: | The aim of this study was to assess physical activity (PA) awareness of adolescents and to identify anthropometric and psychosocial factors that can lead to under or overestimation of PA. This study included 2044 adolescents. Participants wore a uniaxial accelerometer for 7 days to measure PA and completed a self-rated questionnaire about PA. Adolescents were classified into four PA awareness subgroups (realistically active, overestimators, underestimators and realistically inactive) according to the self-rated and objective assessment of PA. Characteristics and psychosocial factors of the self-rated physically active groups were compared using bivariate and multivariate mixed logistic regression models. Forty-five percent of adolescents reported their PA levels correctly (34.8% realistically active and 10.1% realistically inactive). Among the 59.4% who were objectively inactive, 82.9% tended to overestimate their PA level. Adolescents who overestimated their PA level were older (P < .05), had more support from mother and a best friend (P < .05) and had higher cardiorespiratory fitness (P < .001) compared with those who were realistically active. A significant number of adolescents believe that they are physically active when they are not. Improving awareness, especially in the high-risk groups identified here, might help to bring about behavioural changes in physically inactive adolescents. |
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Keywords: | Youth health assessment |
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