Abstract
BackgroundEvidence suggests possible synergetic effects of multiple lifestyle behaviors on health risks like obesity and other health outcomes. A better insight in the clustering of those behaviors, could help to identify groups who are at risk in developing chronic diseases. This study examines the prevalence and clustering of physical activity, sedentary and dietary patterns among European adolescents and investigates if the identified clusters could be characterized by socio-demographic factors.MethodsThe study comprised a total of 2084 adolescents (45.6% male), from eight European cities participating in the HELENA (Healthy Lifestyle in Europe by Nutrition in Adolescence) study. Physical activity and sedentary behavior were measured using self-reported questionnaires and diet quality was assessed based on dietary recall. Based on the results of those three indices, cluster analyses were performed. To identify gender differences and associations with socio-demographic variables, chi-square tests were executed.ResultsFive stable and meaningful clusters were found. Only 18% of the adolescents showed healthy and 21% unhealthy scores on all three included indices. Males were highly presented in the cluster with high levels of moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and low quality diets. The clusters with low levels of MVPA and high quality diets comprised more female adolescents. Adolescents with low educated parents had diets of lower quality and spent more time in sedentary activities. In addition, the clusters with high levels of MVPA comprised more adolescents of the younger age category.ConclusionIn order to develop effective primary prevention strategies, it would be important to consider multiple health indices when identifying high risk groups.
Highlights
Evidence suggests possible synergetic effects of multiple lifestyle behaviors on health risks like obesity and other health outcomes
Study design Data was derived from the HELENA-Cross Sectional Study (CSS), which was conducted in 10 European cities (Athens in Greece, Dortmund in Germany, Ghent in Belgium, Heraklion in Crete, Lille in France, Pecs in Hungary, Rome in Italy, Stockholm in Sweden, Vienna in Austria, and Zaragoza in Spain) from 2006 to 2007
While adolescents from cluster 1 showed the lowest moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) levels, those in cluster 3 reported the highest time spent in MVPA
Summary
Evidence suggests possible synergetic effects of multiple lifestyle behaviors on health risks like obesity and other health outcomes. This study examines the prevalence and clustering of physical activity, sedentary and dietary patterns among European adolescents and investigates if the identified clusters could be characterized by socio-demographic factors. The HBSC Study revealed that food habits of adolescents are characterized by a high consumption of sweets and soft drinks, breakfast skipping, and a low consumption of fruits and vegetables [9]. These results indicate the need for a systematic promotion of healthy lifestyles starting from childhood. It is necessary to gain insight on the dominant socio-demographic correlates for PA, sedentary behavior and adverse dietary patterns
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