School Bag-Related Factors and Their Implications for Walking and Cycling to School among New Zealand Adolescents.

Sandra Mandic,Kimberley King,Mohammad Lutfur Rahman,Ann-Maree Fox,Kaisa Kentala,Kirsten J Coppell,Enrique García Bengoechea,Ricardo Oliveira,Margaretha Liliana Situmorang

doi:10.3390/ijerph182413125

Abstract

Excessive school bag weight may be a modifiable barrier to active transport to school. This study examined correlates of school bag weight and adolescents’ perceptions of excessive school bag weight for walking and cycling to school among New Zealand adolescents living in diverse settlement types. Adolescents (n = 1512; 15.0 ± 1.3 years) completed a questionnaire and had their bag weight (n = 1190) and body weight (n = 1038) measured. Adolescents using active transport and rural adolescents had lighter school bags compared to their counterparts. One-third of adolescents reported excessive school bag weight for walking (31.2%) and cycling (37.2%) to school. Positive correlates of relative school bag weight were female gender (regression coefficient (95% CI): 0.53 (0.13, 0.93)), and underweight (2.21 (1.39, 3.02)), whereas negative correlates were Māori ethnicity (−0.87 (−1.41, −0.32)), overweight (−1.84 (−2.35, −1.34)) and obesity (−3.57 (−4.26, −2.87)), and school location in small urban areas (−2.10 (−4.19, −0.01)), and rural settlements (−3.58 (−5.66, −1.49)). Older adolescents, females, those with greater relative school bag weight, and those experiencing school bag-related pain symptoms and/or fatigue were more likely to report excessive school bag weight for both walking and cycling to school. Future initiatives should target reducing excessive school bag weight, particularly in female and urban adolescents.

Highlights

These findings indicate that excessive school bag weight is a significant issue for adolescents, especially in some subgroups, and is a potentially modifiable barrier to active transport to school in adolescents
School bag-related fatigue and pain symptoms were more frequently reported by female adolescents, those attending schools in a large urban area, and by users of motorised and mixed transport to school compared to their counterparts
Several previous studies reported that younger adolescents and underweight adolescents had higher relative school bag weights than older adolescents and overweight and obese adolescents [8,9,21,34]. These findings suggest that future interventions aimed at reducing school bag weight in adolescents should target those living in urban areas, pay attention to underweight adolescents, and consider other relevant factors such as adolescents’ ages

Summary

Introduction

The low levels of physical activity and sedentary lifestyles increasingly found among adolescents [1] globally contribute to poor health, including obesity and reduced psychosocial health [2]. Walking and/or cycling to school is a convenient way to integrate physical activity into adolescents’ daily lives and is associated with higher levels of physical activity and energy expenditure [3,4,5,6]. Actual and/or perceived excess school bag weight may be a modifiable barrier to active transport to school among adolescents [7]. The average school bag weight for adolescents varies between countries, ranging from 2.8 kg in Iran [8] to 6.6 kg in New

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