Physical activity patterns of Maltese 10 year olds during recess by weight status

Abstract

Various reports have shown that Maltese children are very inactive during recess and top the list of European countries for prevalence of overweight and obesity. Schools provide an important environment where children can be physically active particularly during physical education lessons and recess. According to research most students do not increase their activity levels out of school hours to compensate for the little or no activity they do in the break time. Research on activities carried out during recess in Malta is limited. The aim of this research is to explore the behaviour of Maltese 10 year old students during recess and to measure the amount and intensity of Physical Activity carried out by children of different genders and weight categories (obese, overweight and healthy weight). Physical activity was measured using accelerometers. Height and weight were measured to calculate the body mass index and to classify the participants into different weight statuses using IOTF standards. Data about school recess was gathered through a questionnaire that explores physical activity and nutritional habits. A sample of children from different school types (133 students from State, 50 from church and 26 students from Independent schools) were selected for this research. From the whole sample, 63.5% were Healthy weight, 23.6% were overweight and 13.0% resulted to be obese. Only (31%) of the boys and (4%) of the girls reached the recommended daily Moderate to Vigorous Physical Activity of 60 minutes. During the break Healthy weight students reached 13 minutes of MVPA, overweight and obese 12 minutes.