Differences In Physical Activity And Physical Fitness In Children By Levels Of Urbanization

Abstract

PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of different geographical settings on physical activity (PA) and physical fitness (PF) in children. METHODS Data were obtained from 61 elementary schools that were involved in a large statewide surveillance study known as PANARY (Physical Activity and Nutrition Among Rural Youth). Physical activity data were obtained from 1014 boys and 1057 girls (grades 4–6) using the Physical Activity Questionnaire for Children (PAQ-C). Physical fitness data were obtained from 846 boys and 912 girls using the PACER aerobic shuttle run. Degree of urbanization was determined by county Beale codes that range from 0–9. Codes of 0–2 defined large urban areas (UA), codes of 3–5 defined small cities (SC) and codes of 6–9 defined rural areas (RA). Two-way (gender × urbanization) Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) were used to test for differences in the PA and PF outcomes with age controlled as a covariate. Effect Sizes (ES) were used to report the magnitudes of the effects. RESULTS For PA, there were significant main effects for gender (p <.01) and degree of urbanization (p <.01). Boys had higher physical activity levels than girls in all three categories of urbanization, although the effect sizes were small (ES ∼ .20). Participants from UA areas reported the lowest levels of physical activity and these levels were significantly different than those from participants in SC (ES = −.39) and RA (ES = −.28). For PF, the gender × urbanization interaction was significant (p = .013). Boys in SC and RA had higher fitness levels than boys in UA (ES = .52 and .28, respectively). In contrast, Girls in SC and UA had higher fitness levels than girls in RA (ES ∼ .23). Boys had higher fitness scores than girls in SC (ES = .52), and RA (ES = .54) but not in UA. CONCLUSION There were differences in PA and PF levels by degree of urbanization but some of this effect may be due to socioeconomic status (SES). The SC schools had lower percentages of children eligible for free or reduced lunch (24%) than UA (29%) or RA (40%). Access to parks and programs, and quality of school physical education may also account for differences in the samples. Additional research is needed to understand possible environmental influences on PA and PF.