ESPE Yearbook of Paediatric Endocrinology

To read the full abstract: Lancet Child Adolesc Health 2020; 4: 23–35. doi: 10.1016/S2352-4642(19)30323-2

• The study reports the worldwide prevalence of insufficient physical activity among school-going adolescents aged 11–17 years.• Data from surveys totalling 1.6 million students aged 11–17 years were analysed.• The majority of adolescents do not presently meet physical activity guidelines.

WHO set a global target of a 15% relative reduction of insufficient physical activity among adolescents and adults by 2030. Insufficient physical activity was defined as not reaching the current WHO recommendation of 60 min of daily physical activity of moderate-to-vigorous intensity. Indeed, the health benefits of a physically active lifestyle during adolescence are important for the prevention of non communicable diseases through positive effects on weight, on cardiorespiratory and muscular fitness and on cardiometabolic health. Overall, the results of this study show that insufficient physical activity has remained similar or (in boys only) has slightly decreased in adolescents aged 11–17 years between 2001 and 2016. These results, which are not encouraging, need to be interpreted cautiously. First, the authors evaluated physical activity indirectly, through questionnaires, and it is highly possible that simple questions about physical activity may not reflect true physical activity. Second, compared to high-income countries, there was a dearth of data in low-income countries. In fact, data were not available for many countries in sub-Saharan Africa. Finally, culture may affect how questions are understood and answered in different countries. Nevertheless, it seems that few changes in physical activity have taken place over a 15-year period and that the results are similar in all parts of the world. Unfortunately, the study does not provide information on the determinants of physical activity and on how these determinants may differ in different countries. These are arguably key questions for those tasked with developing public health measures. Adolescent activity (or lack thereof) remains a true global issue that needs to be addressed if one hopes to prevent the rapid progression of non-communicable diseases and their cost to fragile health systems.