Association between school environment with sedentary behavior and physical activity intensity in children

We examined the association between indicators of the school environment with sedentary behavior and different intensities of physical activity in children. The study that included 515 children (265 boys) aged 9-11 years old from public and private schools in the city of Sao Caetano do Sul. Sedentary behavior and different intensities of physical activity were evaluated with an accelerometer. Inside school environment (policies, supervision committee, extracurricular activities, breaks, and access to school facilities) was evaluated using a questionnaire. Policies and practice (beta: 8.49; 95% CI: 3.62-13.36), supervision committee (5.42; 0.64-10.19), inter-school competitions (2.40, 2.25-2.55), breaks of 15-29 min/day (6.87; 2.20-10.75), and outdoor sports field (5.40; 0.37-10.44), were positively associated with moderate-to-vigorous-intensity physical activity. Furthermore, crossing guards (7.65; 3.00-12.30) were positively associated with moderate-to-vigorous-intensity physical activity. We concluded that an association was found between school environment indicators with higher levels of physical activity and greater odds of meeting physical activity guidelines.

Automated summary

This study examined the association between school environment indicators and sedentary behavior as well as different intensities of physical activity in children. It included 515 children aged 9-11 years old from public and private schools in Sao Caetano do Sul, Brazil. Sedentary behavior and physical activity were evaluated using an accelerometer, while the school environment indicators were assessed through a questionnaire. The findings revealed that school policies and practice, supervision committee, inter-school competitions, breaks of 15-29 minutes, outdoor sports field, and crossing guards were positively associated with moderate-to-vigorous-intensity physical activity. In conclusion, there is a relationship between school environment indicators and higher levels of physical activity, leading to a greater likelihood of meeting physical activity guidelines.