Association between participation in Physical Education classes and physical activity among 284,820 adolescents: a progressive exposure gradient analysis

Congratulations to Dr. Mark Tremblay on his recent publication, “Association between participation in Physical Education classes and physical activity among 284,820 adolescents: a progressive exposure gradient analysis” just published in Pediatric Exercise Science! The abstract and citation can be found below.

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to analyze the associations between participation in physical education (PE) classes and days with ≥60 minutes of moderate- to vigorous-intensity physical activity (MVPA) using different reference categories for participation in PE. Methods: We used self-reported data from 284,820 adolescents. Results: When no participation in PE was the reference, participation on 1 (prevalence ratio [PR] = 1.15 [1.12–1.18]), 2 (PR = 1.24 [1.20–1.27]), 3 to 4 (PR = 1.32 [1.28–1.36]), and  ≥5 days per week (PR = 1.8 [1.33–1.43]) increased frequency of days of ≥60 minutes of MVPA. Participating in PE on 2 (PR = 1.07 [1.02–1.09]), 3 to 4 (PR = 1.15 [1.12–1.18]), and ≥5 days per week (PR = 1.18 [1.15–1.22]) increased the days of ≥60 minutes of MVPA when participation in PE classes on 1 days per week was the reference. When participation in PE on 2 days per week was the reference, participation in PE classes on 3 to 4 (PR = 1.07 [1.04–1.09]) and ≥5 days per week (PR = 1.12 [1.09–1.15]) increased the days of ≥60 minutes of MVPA. Participating in PE classes on ≥5 days per week increased the days of ≥60 minutes of MVPA (PR = 1.05 [1.03–1.07]) when participation on 3 to 4 days per week was the reference. Conclusions: For those with no participation in PE classes, the addition of any PE classes could positively impact the weekly frequency of days of ≥60 minutes of MVPA. Even in countries/territories with large coverage of participation in PE classes, promoting more PE classes could be useful to increase physical activity.

Citation

Araujo RHO, Werneck AO, Jesus GM, et al. Association Between Participation in Physical Education Classes and Physical Activity Among 284,820 Adolescents: A Progressive Exposure Gradient Analysis. Pediatr Exerc Sci. 2024;37(4):369-377. Published 2024 Oct 29. doi:10.1123/pes.2023-0154