Active Healthy Kids Canada Report Research Articles

Results From Malaysia's 2016 Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Adolescents.

The 2016 Malaysia Active Healthy Kids Report Card aims to collect, assess, and grade current and comprehensive data on physical activity (PA) and associated factors in Malaysian children and adolescents aged 5 to 17 years. This report card was developed following the Active Healthy Kids Canada Report Card protocol. The Research Working Group identified the core matrices, assessed the key data sources, and evaluated the evidence gathered for grade assignments. A grade was assigned to each indicator by comparing the best available evidence against relevant benchmark using a standardized grading scheme. Overall Physical Activity, Active Transportation, and Sedentary Behavior were assigned the D grade. The lowest grade of F was assigned to Diet, while School and Government Strategies and Investments were graded higher with a B. Five indicators were assigned INC (incomplete) due to a lack of representative data. The report card demonstrates that Malaysian children and adolescents are engaging in low levels of PA and active commuting, high levels of screen time, and have extremely low compliance with dietary recommendations. More efforts are needed to address the root causes of physical inactivity while increasing the opportunities for children and adolescents to be more physically active.

Results From the Mozambique 2016 Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Adolescents.

This article describes the procedures and development of the 2016 Mozambican Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Adolescents. Following the procedures adopted in 2014 for that year's report card, comprehensive searches on new data related to indicators of physical activity (PA) were done. A committee composed of physical activity and sports specialists graded each indicator consistent with the process and methodology outlined by the Active Healthy Kids Canada Report Card model. Nine indicators of PA were graded. Compared with 2014 there were several differences which were caused by changes in the country as well as a more effective evaluation from the committee. The following grades were assigned: Overall Physical Activity Levels, C; Organized Sport Participation, F; Active Play, D; Active Transportation, C; Schools, D; Community and the Built Environment, F; and Government, F. Sedentary Behaviors and Family and Peers were graded Incomplete due to the lack of available information. The decline of the PA habits in urban centers reported in 2014 are accentuated and is influencing the rural areas in several ways. At present, there is no strategy or effective action from authorities to reverse this negative trend.

Results From Denmark's 2016 Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Youth.

The first Danish Report Card on Physical Activity (PA) for Children and Youth describes Denmark's efforts in promoting and facilitating PA and PA opportunities for children and youth. The report card relies primarily on a synthesis of the best available research and policy strategies identified by the Report Card Research Committee consisting of a wide presentation of researchers and experts within PA health behaviors and policy development. The work was coordinated by Research and Innovation Centre for Human Movement and Learning situated at the University of Southern Denmark and the University College Lillebaelt. Nine PA indicators were graded using the Active Healthy Kids Canada Report Card development process. Grades from A (highest) to F (lowest) varied in Denmark as follows: 1) Overall Physical Activity (D+), 2) Organized Sport Participation (A), 3) Active Play (INC; incomplete), 4) Active Transportation (B), 5) Sedentary Behaviors (INC), 6) Family and Peers (INC), 7) School (B), 8) Community and the Built Environment (B+), and 9) Government strategies and investments (A-). A large proportion of children in Denmark do not meet the recommendations for PA despite the favorable investments and intensions from the government to create good facilities and promote PA.

A36 Active transportation: are Canadian children and youth reaching the target?

Abstract Background Active transportation is an important source of physical activity for children and youth. Since 2005, the annual Active Healthy Kids Canada Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Youth has been a major knowledge translation tool that outlines how Canada is doing in terms of providing physical activity opportunities for children and youth. The purpose of this review is to provide an overview of the grades for the active transportation indicator over the last 10 years and highlight the best available evidence that informed these grades. Methods Based on an annual review of the Canadian active transportation literature, a panel of experts assigned a grade by consensus to represent the proportion of children and youth engaging in active transportation. Key considerations included the quality of evidence and the presence of disparities (e.g., time-trends, geographic, gender, and socioeconomic differences). A letter-based grading scheme was used to rate the proportion of children and youth that engage in regular active transportation: A, 81%–100%; B, 61%–80%; C, 41%–60%; D, 21%–40%;F, 0%–20%; INC, incomplete data. The grading scheme also incorporated a plus-minus system depending on trends over time and the presence of disparities (i.e., race/ethnicity, disabilities, immigration status, socioeconomic status, geography, gender, and age). Results Over the last 10 years, the active transportation grade has steadily remained at “D”. This is primarily attributable to consistent evidence showing that about 25-35% of Canadian children and youth engage in active transportation to/from school. Conversely, the 2013 Report Card highlighted that the percentage of young Canadians using only motorized modes rose from 51 to 62% between 2000 and 2010. Furthermore, children living in higher socioeconomic status families, in Eastern provinces, in rural areas or in smaller cities were consistently less likely to engage in active transportation to/from school. Conclusions Canada has consistently received D grades for the active transportation indicator due to the low prevalence of active transportation to/from school. Moreover, motorized school travel has increased over the last decade, thereby depriving children of an important source of physical activity. Very few data are available regarding trips to/from other destinations, underscoring a need for future research. The Report Card has been a successful knowledge translation tool that has recently been replicated in several countries around the world.

Are we driving our kids to unhealthy habits? Results of the active healthy kids Canada 2013 report card on physical activity for children and youth.

This article examines the time trends in patterns of school travel mode among Canadian children and youth to inform the Active Transportation (AT) indicator of the 2013 Active Healthy Kids Canada Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Youth. The AT grade was assigned based on a comprehensive synthesis of the 2000 and 2010 Physical Activity Monitor studies from the Canadian Fitness and Lifestyle Research Institute and the 1992, 1998, 2005, and 2010 General Social Survey from Statistics Canada. The results showed that in 2013, AT was graded a D, because less than half of Canadian children and youth used only active modes of transportation to get to and from school. The proportion of Canadian children and youth who used only inactive modes of transportation for school travel increased significantly from 51% to 62% over the last decade. Children and youth from larger communities and those with lower household income levels were significantly more likely to use AT than those living in smaller communities and those in higher income households, respectively. In conclusion, motorized transport for school travel has increased steadily over the last decade across Canada. Regional and socio-demographic disparities should be considered in efforts to increase the number of children using AT.

Impact of the Active Healthy Kids Canada Report Card: A 10-Year Analysis

Impact of the Active Healthy Kids Canada Report Card: A 10-Year Analysis

Impact of the Active Healthy Kids Canada report card: a 10-year analysis.

For 20 years Active Healthy Kids Canada (AHKC) has worked to inspire the country to engage all children and youth in physical activity (PA). The primary vehicle to achieve this is the AHKC Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Youth, which has been released annually since 2005. Using 10 years of experience with this knowledge translation and synthesis mechanism, this paper aggregates and consolidates diverse evidence demonstrating the impact of the Report Card and related knowledge translation activities. Over the years many evaluations, consultations, assessments, and surveys have helped inform changes in the Report Card to improve its impact. Guided by a logic model, the various assessments have traversed areas related to distribution and reach, meeting stakeholder needs, use of the Report Card, its influence on policy, and advancing the mission of AHKC. In the past 10 years, the Report Card has achieved > 1 billion media impressions, distributed > 120,000 printed copies and > 200,000 electronic copies, and benefited from a collective ad value > $10 million. The Report Card has been replicated in 14 countries, 2 provinces, 1 state and 1 city. AHKC has received consistent positive feedback from stakeholders and end-users, who reported that the Report Card has been used for public awareness/education campaigns and advocacy strategies, to strengthen partnerships, to inform research and program design, and to advance and adjust policies and strategies. Collectively, the evidence suggests that the Report Card has been successful at powering the movement to get kids moving, and in achieving demonstrable success on immediate and intermediate outcomes, although the long-term goal of improving the PA of Canadian children and youth remains to be realized.

Results from Mozambique's 2014 Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Youth.

This paper describes the procedures and development of the first Mozambican Report Card on Physical Activity in Children and Adolescents. Comprehensive searches for data related to indicators of physical activity (PA) were completed by a committee of physical activity and sports specialists. Grades were assigned to each indicator consistent with the process and methodology outlined by the Active Healthy Kids Canada Report Card model. Seven indicators of PA were graded. The following grades were assigned: Overall Physical Activity Levels, B; Organized Sport Participation, F; Active Play, C; Active Transportation, B; Schools, C; Community and the Built Environment, F; and Government, C. Sedentary Behaviors and Family and Peers were not graded due to the lack of available information. PA behaviors of children and young people of Mozambique are positively influenced by the rural environment and are largely related to subsistence activities and outdoor play, and absence of motorized transport. In turn, urban areas are declining in active habits and opportunities due largely to rapid urbanization and lack of planning that favors active transport and play.

Results from England's 2014 Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Youth.

The Active Healthy Kids 2014 England Report Card aims to provide a systematic assessment of how England is performing in relation to engaging and facilitating physical activity (PA) in children and young people. The systematic methods and processes that underpin the Active Healthy Kids Canada Report Card were used and adapted. Data and evidence were consolidated, reviewed by a panel of content experts, and used to inform the assignment of letter grades (A, B, C, D, F) to 9 core indicators related to PA. Children's Overall Physical Activity received a grade of C/D. Active Transportation and Organized Sport Participation received grades of C and C-, respectively. The indicators of School and Community and the Built Environment were graded favorable with grades of A- and B, respectively. Active Play, Sedentary Behaviors, Family and Peers, and Government Strategies and Investments were graded as INC (incomplete) due to a lack of nationally representative data and/or as a result of data not mapping onto the benchmarks used to assign the grades. Substantial provision for PA opportunities in England exists. Yet more effort is required to maximize use of these resources to increase PA participation.

Active play: An important physical activity strategy in the fight against childhood obesity

To quantify and compare the number of calories that school-aged Canadian children expend to meet established benchmarks for active play and organized physical activities (i.e., organized sport, physical education, active transportation). This study was informed by the benchmarks (i.e., amount of activity a child needs to be sufficiently active) and grades (i.e., how Canada as a country is doing) for the physical activity domains included in the Active Healthy Kids Canada Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Youth. Established physical activity energy expenditure data were used to calculate the number of calories that the average 6-11 year old child would expend to meet the Report Card physical activity benchmarks. The increase in energy expenditure at the population-level that would occur if each Report Card grade was to improve by one letter grade was estimated based on the aforementioned estimates and the proportion of the population impacted should the grade improve. When averaged across all 365 days of the year, the average 6-11 year old Canadian would expend an added 186 kcal/day to meet the active play benchmark, 23 kcal/day to meet the organized sport benchmark, 6 kcal/day to meet the physical education benchmark, and 16 kcal/day to meet the active transportation to school benchmark. Increasing the Report Card grades for these four domains would address 37%, 1%, 1%, and 3% of the energy gap, respectively. Initiatives aimed at increasing physical activity in an attempt to address childhood obesity should include an active play component.

Results from Scotland's 2013 Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Youth.

The Active Healthy Kids Scotland Report Card aims to consolidate existing evidence, facilitate international comparisons, encourage more evidence-informed physical activity and health policy, and improve surveillance of physical activity. Application of the Active Healthy Kids Canada Report Card process and methodology to Scotland, adapted to Scottish circumstances and availability of data. The Active Healthy Kids Scotland Report Card 2013 consists of indicators of 7 Health Behaviors and Outcomes and 3 Influences on Health Behaviors and Outcomes. Grades of F were assigned to Overall Physical Activity, Sedentary Behavior (recreational screen time), and Obesity Prevalence. A C was assigned to Active Transportation and a D- was assigned to Diet. Two indicators, Active and Outdoor Play and Organized Sport Participation, could not be graded. Among the Influences, Family Influence received a D, while Perceived Safety, Access, and Availability of Spaces for Physical Activity and the National Policy Environment graded more favorably with a B. The Active Healthy Kids Canada process and methodology was readily generalizable to Scotland. The report card illustrated low habitual physical activity and extremely high levels of screen-based sedentary behavior, and highlighted several opportunities for improved physical activity surveillance and promotion strategies.

Major Initiatives Related to Childhood Obesity and Physical Inactivity in Canada

This commentary briefly reviews 10 significant initiatives related to childhood obesity and physical inactivity in Canada in 2007. These include: the Children’s Fitness Tax Credit; CAN-PLAY research findings from the Canadian Fitness and Lifestyle Research Institute; resurrection of ParticipACTION; Healthy Weights for Healthy Kids report from the Standing Committee on Health; launch of the Canadian Health Measures Survey; publication of the Canadian Clinical Practice Guidelines on the Management and Prevention of Obesity in Adults and Children; Canada’s food and beverage industry initiatives launch; hosting the International Conference on Physical Activity and Obesity in Children; release of the Active Healthy Kids Canada report card on physical activity for children and youth; and publication of the “advancing the future of Canada’s physical activity measurement and guidelines” project. The diversity and intensity of activity addressing the childhood obesity and physical inactivity “epidemic” in Canada is encouraging and must be maintained.