Pedometer-Measured Physical Activity Patterns of Youth A 13-Country Review

Context: Insufficient physical activity among Young people aged 5-18 years is a global public health Issue, with considerable disparities among countries. A systematic review was conducted to identify studies reporting pedometer daily steps (steps.day(-1)) in order to compile comparative, global cross-sectional data on youth physical activity patterns. Evidence acquisition: Articles were included if they were in English, published by April 2009, and reported steps.day(-1) for boys and girls, separately, and reported steps.day(-1) for age groupings Of 110 more than 4 years (e.g., 5-8 years) or combined no more than three grade levels (e g., third- to fifth-graders). Studies could have been intervention-based but had to have reported baseline steps.day(-1), which Would reflect unadulterated physical activity steps.day(-1) estimates. Inverse variance weighted estimates (steps.day(-1)) were calculated for each Country, and random effects models were estimated. Analyses were conducted in May and June 2009 Evidence synthesis: Forty-three studies, representing young people in 13 countries (N= 14,200), were included. The majority of studies were from the U.S. (17/43). Overall, there was considerable variation within and among countries in steps.day(-1w). Boys and girls from European and Western Pacific regions had significantly more steps.day(-1w) than young people from the U.S. and Canada. Significantly lower steps-day(-1w) estimates for girls were observed for studies that combined measured steps.day(-1) for weekdays and weekend days, in comparison to weekdays only Conclusions: Limited sample sizes and non-population-based data preclude definitive statements regarding projected steps.day(-1) within countries Nevertheless, these findings provide preliminary information for policymakers and researchers on the extent of the disparities among countries in the physical activity patterns of young people. (Am J Prev Med 2010,38(2).208-216) (c) 2010 American Journal of Preventive Medicine