Gender Differences In Sport And Physical Activity Participation In Children With Type 1 Diabetes

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It is important for children, youth and young adults with type 1 diabetes (T1D) to meet physical activity (PA) recommendations. Research focusing on sport participation and other forms of PA that are formally organized or not formally organized is limited, especially considering there may be gender differences in sport and PA participation. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to identify gender differences in sport participation in children, youth and young adults with T1D. We further sought to explore the types of sports and PA that they engaged in and were most important to them, and whether these activities were formally organized. METHODS: The study sample consisted of 194 patients with T1D [14.27 years ±3.63; 96 (50.5%) female] who completed a PA and sport participation survey during their regularly scheduled pediatric endocrinology appointment. Survey data assessing number of sports played within the past year, the sport or PA that they participated in most and/or was the most important to them, and whether that sport or PA was organized by a school or community league were linked to their medical records for gender and age. RESULTS: Spearman’s rank order correlation tests indicated that there was not a statistically significant relationship between gender (females, n = 51, 53.1%; males, n = 59, 60.2%) and sport participation of at least one sport in the previous year, r(192) = .06, p = .407. For females, 8 (8.0%) participated in 3 or more sports while 15 (15.3%) of males participated in 3 or more sports. The most frequently reported sports or PA differed for genders. Walking was reported as most participated in and/or most important sport or PA for females (n = 11; opposed to 2 males) with 10 reported as not organized. CONCLUSIONS: Although there was no significant relationship between gender and sport participation, a strength of this study highlighted that the types of sports and PA that females and males participated in differed in organizational status. Practical implications of this study underscore the importance of understanding the types of sports and PA that children, youth and young adults with T1D participate in so that interventions can be tailored to support their preferences. Organized walking clubs or interventions may benefit female participants in the accruing of PA and management of T1D.