Attentional distraction during exercise in overweight and normal-weight boys

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of attentional distraction on field running distance and activity intensity during an exercise session in normal-weight and overweight youngsters and to investigate potential mediators. Fifty-three 12–14 yr-old boys participated twice in a 12-min running test and a 20-min exercise session, once with attentional distraction (by listerning to music) and once without distraction (counterbalanced randomised controlled design). At the end of the endurance test running distance was recorded. During the exercise session activity intensity was assessed by accelerometers. After each experiment, rate of perceived exertion (RPE) was estimated and seven questions were asked about how participants experienced the experiment. Both overweight and normal-weight boys ran further during the running test with music (p < 0.05) and this effect was mediated by a decrease in feelings of annoyance. During the exercise session with music, both overweight and normal-weight boys exercised less at low and high intensity and more at moderate and very high intensity (p < 0.01) and this effect was mediated by a decrease in RPE. We can conclude that attentional distraction has a positive effect on running distance on a field endurance test and on activity intensity during an exercise session through different mechanisms in both overweight and normal-weight boys

Determinants of eating behaviour in university students : a qualitative study using focus group discussions

Background: College or university is a critical period regarding unhealthy changes in eating behaviours in students. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to explore which factors influence Belgian (European) university students' eating behaviour, using a qualitative research design. Furthermore, we aimed to collect ideas and recommendations in order to facilitate the development of effective and tailored intervention programs aiming to improve healthy eating behaviours in university students. Methods: Using a semi-structured question guide, five focus group discussions have been conducted consisting of 14 male and 21 female university students from a variety of study disciplines, with a mean age of 20.6 +/- 1.7 yrs. Using Nvivo9, an inductive thematic approach was used for data analysis. Results: After the transition from secondary school to university, when independency increases, students are continuously challenged to make healthful food choices. Students reported to be influenced by individual factors (e. g. taste preferences, self-discipline, time and convenience), their social networks (e. g. (lack of) parental control, friends and peers), physical environment (e. g. availability and accessibility, appeal and prices of food products), and macro environment (e. g. media and advertising). Furthermore, the relationships between determinants and university students' eating behaviour seemed to be moderated by university characteristics, such as residency, student societies, university lifestyle and exams. Recommendations for university administrators and researchers include providing information and advice to enhance healthy food choices and preparation (e. g. via social media), enhancing self-discipline and self-control, developing time management skills, enhancing social support, and modifying the subjective as well as the objective campus food environment by e. g. making healthy foods price-beneficial and by providing vending machines with more healthy products. Conclusions: This is the first European study examining perceived determinants of eating behaviour in university students and collecting ideas and recommendations for healthy eating interventions in a university specific setting. University characteristics (residency, exams, etc.) influence the relationships between individual as well as social environmental determinants and university students' eating behaviour, and should therefore be taken into account when designing effective and tailored multilevel intervention programs aiming to improve healthy eating behaviours in university students

The contribution of former work-related activity levels to predict physical activity and sedentary time during early retirement : moderating role of educational level and physical functioning

BACKGROUND: The transition to retirement introduces a decline in total physical activity and an increase in TV viewing time. Nonetheless, as more time becomes available, early retirement is an ideal stage to implement health interventions. Therefore, knowledge on specific determinants of physical activity and sedentary time is needed. Former work-related physical activity has been proposed as a potential determinant, but concrete evidence is lacking. The aim of this study was to examine if former work-related sitting, standing, walking or vigorous activities predict physical activity and sedentary time during early retirement. Additionally, moderating effects of educational level and physical functioning were examined. METHODS: In total, 392 recently retired Belgian adults (>6 months, <5 years) completed the International Physical Activity Questionnaire, the SF-36 Health Survey and a questionnaire on sociodemographics and former work-related activities. Generalized linear regression analyses were conducted in R. Moderating effects were examined by adding cross-products to the models. RESULTS: More former work-related sitting was predictive of more screen time during retirement. Lower levels of former work-related vigorous activities and higher levels of former work-related walking were associated with respectively more cycling for transport and more walking for transport during retirement. None of the predictors significantly explained passive transportation, cycling and walking for recreation, and leisure-time moderate-to-vigorous physical activity during retirement. Several moderating effects were found, but the direction of the interactions was not univocal. CONCLUSIONS: Former-work related behaviors are of limited importance to explain physical activity during early retirement, so future studies should focus on other individual, social and environmental determinants. Nonetheless, adults who previously had a sedentary job had higher levels of screen time during retirement, so this is an important subgroup to focus on during interventions. Because of the inconsistent moderating effects of educational level and physical functioning, no clear recommendations can be formulated

The environment and physical activity

Until recently, obesity research has mainly focused on biological and behavioral factors. However, there is growing agreement among researchers that the social and physical environment may play an important role as well. Certain aspects of the environment may promote or discourage physical activity and therefore have an influence on children’s body weight. The purpose of this chapter is to give an overview of the current knowledge on the relation between the physical neighborhood environment and physical activity in children

Health promotion interventions in social economy companies in Flanders (Belgium)

BACKGROUND: Disadvantaged groups are often not reached by mainstream health promotion interventions. Implementing health promotion (HP) interventions in social economy companies, can be an opportunity to reach those people. The implementation of these interventions in social economy companies was studied. Factors that could be related to the implementation of HP and being supportive towards implementation in the future, were investigated. METHODS: An online, quantitative survey was sent to all 148 sheltered and social workshops in Flanders. In the questionnaire, the status of HP interventions and characteristics of the workshop were explored. Personal factors (such as attitudes towards HP, behavioural control, social norms and moral responsibility) were asked to the person responsible for implementation of HP interventions. Univariate and multivariate logistic regressions were performed. RESULTS: Respondents of 88 workshops completed the questionnaire. Almost 60 % of the workshops implemented environmental or policy interventions. Having a positive attitude towards HP, being more morally responsible, and having the subjective norm that employees are positive towards health promotion at work, were related to being more supportive towards the implementation of HP in the univariate analyses. Only attitude stayed significantly related to being more supportive towards the implementation of HP in the multivariate analyses. CONCLUSIONS: Sheltered and social workshops are open to HP interventions, but more can be done to optimize the implementation. To persuade persons responsible for the implementation of HP to invest more in HP, changing attitudes concerning the benefits of health promotion for the employee and the company, is an important strategy

Lower neighbourhood walkability and longer distance to school are related to physical activity in Belgian adolescents

OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether adolescents living in a high-walkable town centre are more physically active than those living in a less-walkable suburb. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was conducted in Izegem (Belgium). Data collection took place in spring 2007. One high-walkable urban neighbourhood and one less-walkable suburban neighbourhood were selected, based on objective connectivity and residential density. One hundred twenty adolescents (12-18 years, 60 per neighbourhood) completed the Neighbourhood Environmental Walkability Scale (NEWS), the Neighbourhood Physical Activity Questionnaire (NPAQ), wore a pedometer for 7 days and filled in an activity log. RESULTS: In contrast with the expectations, adolescents living in the less-walkable suburb reported 220 min/week more cycling for transport than those living in the high-walkable town centre. A trend towards significance was found for mean step counts/day with 1371 more steps/day for suburban adolescents. Travel time to school was 7.4 minutes less for urban adolescents. CONCLUSIONS: In contrast with previous results in adults, lower walkability and larger distance to school was associated with more physical activity in Belgian adolescents. Therefore, physical environmental interventions designed for adults, focusing on increases in connectivity, residential density and connectivity, might not be effective for Belgian adolescents

Associations between different types of physical activity and teachers' perceived mental, physical, and work-related health

Background: The teaching profession is characterized by high levels of stress and physical complaints, which might be improved through regular participation in physical activity (PA). However, the effect of PA on mental and physical health is not always consistent and depends on the type of PA performed. The aim of this study was to examine the mental, physical, and work-related health of Flemish secondary school teachers and identify the impact on those health variables by demographic and teaching-related factors and various types of PA. Methods: This study included an online survey conducted across a representative sample of secondary school teachers (n = 1066, average age 40 years; 68 percent female). Level of PA and sitting time were estimated using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire, and perceived mental health and physical health were estimated using the Short Form 36. Work-related factors such as job satisfaction, occupational stress, and absenteeism were also collected. T-tests, ANOVAs, and linear regression analyses were performed. Results: Flemish secondary school teachers have poorer perceived mental and physical health than a general healthy population. This difference is particularly evident among female teachers, who reported lower perceived health, more occupational stress, and more absent days compared to their male colleagues. Higher participation in leisure-time PA was associated with a more positive perceived health. In contrast, higher levels of occupational PA and sitting time had a negative impact on perceived health. Total amount of PA, total amount of moderate-to-vigorous PA, transportation-related PA, and PA at home were not associated to teachers' perceived health. Conclusion: Because secondary school teachers' levels of perceived health are low, they are an important target group for interventions aiming to improve health. Only leisure-time PA was associated with more positive perceived health. This finding may indicate that teachers performing more exercise during leisure time, or in a more autonomous way, may be more resistant to physical and mental health problems. Future research should verify whether promoting leisure-time PA among teachers has the potential to improve their mental and physical health, and counteract the negative associations between teachers' health and their occupational PA

Organizing 'Play Streets' during school vacations can increase physical activity and decrease sedentary time in children

A Play Street is a street that is reserved for children’s safe play for a specific period during school vacations. It was hypothesized that a Play Street near children’s home can increase their moderate- to vigorous-intensity physical activity (MVPA) and decrease their sedentary time. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the effect of Play Streets on children’s MVPA and sedentary time. A nonequivalent control group pretest-posttest design was used to determine the effects of Play Streets on children’s MVPA and sedentary time. Data were collected in Ghent during July and August 2013. The study sample consisted of 126 children (54 from Play streets, 72 from control streets). Children wore an accelerometer for 8 consecutive days and their parents fill out a questionnaire before and after the measurement period. During the intervention, streets were enclosed and reserved for children’s play. Four-level (neighborhood – household – child – time of measurement (no intervention or during intervention)) linear regression models were conducted in MLwiN to determine intervention effects. Positive intervention effects were found for sedentary time (β = -0.76 ± 0.39; χ2 = 3.9; p = 0.05) and MVPA (β = 0.82 ± 0.43; χ2 = 3.6; p = 0.06). Between 14h00 and 19h00, MVPA from children living in Play Streets increased from 27 minutes during normal conditions to 36 minutes during the Play Street intervention, whereas control children’s MVPA decreased from 27 to 24 minutes. Sedentary time from children living in the Play Street decreased from 146 minutes during normal conditions to 138 minutes during the Play Street intervention, whereas control children’s sedentary time increased from 156 minutes to 165 minutes. The intervention effects on MVPA (β = -0.62 ± 0.25; χ2 = 6.3; p = 0.01) and sedentary time (β = 0.85 ± 0.0.33; χ2 = 6.6; p = 0.01) remained significant when the effects were investigated during the entire day, indicating that children did not compensate for their increased MVPA and decreased sedentary time, during the rest of the day. Creating a safe play space near urban children’s home by the Play Street intervention is effective in increasing children’s MVPA and decreasing their sedentary time

The association between objective walkability, neighborhood socio-economic status, and physical activity in Belgian children

Background: Objective walkability is an important correlate of adults’ physical activity. Studies investigating the relation between walkability and children’s physical activity are scarce. However, in order to develop effective environmental interventions, a profound investigation of this relation is needed in all age groups. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between objective walkability and different domains of children’s physical activity, and to investigate the moderating effect of neighborhood socio-economic status in this relation. Methods: Data were collected between December 2011 and May 2013 as part of the Belgian Environmental Physical Activity Study in children. Children (9–12 years old; n = 606) were recruited from 18 elementary schools in Ghent (Belgium). Children together with one of their parents completed the Flemish Physical Activity Questionnaire and wore an accelerometer for 7 consecutive days. Children’s neighborhood walkability was calculated using geographical information systems. Multilevel cross-classified modeling was used to determine the relationship between children’s PA and objectively measured walkability and the moderating effect of neighborhood SES in this relation. Results: In low SES neighborhoods walkability was positively related to walking for transportation during leisure time (β = 0.381 ± 0.124; 95% CI = 0.138, 0.624) and was negatively related to sports during leisure time (β = −0.245 ± 0.121; 95% CI = −0.482, −0.008). In high socio-economic status neighborhoods, walkability was unrelated to children’s physical activity. No relations of neighborhood walkability and neighborhood socio-economic status with cycling during leisure time, active commuting to school and objectively measured moderate- to vigorous-intensity physical activity were found. Conclusions: No univocal relation between neighborhood walkability and physical activity was found in 9–12 year old children. Results from international adult studies cannot be generalized to children. There is a need in future research to determine the key environmental correlates of children’s physical activity

Measuring physical activity using accelerometry in 13-15-year-old adolescents : the importance of including non-wear activities

Objective: The present study aimed to examine the impact of non-wear activities registered in diaries when using accelerometers to assess physical activity (PA) in young adolescents. Design: Data arise from a large-scale cross-sectional study on PA. PA was objectively assessed using Actigraph (TM) accelerometers (Actigraph MTI, Manufacturing Technology Inc., Pensacola, FL, USA) during seven consecutive days. Non-wear time activity diaries were provided to register the activities for which the accelerometer was removed. After correction to deal with over-reporting, the registered minutes of PA were used to replace periods of non-wear time measured by the accelerometer. Setting: Between October 2008 and May 2009 adolescents were recruited by home visits in Ghent (Belgium). Subjects: Young adolescents (n 513; 48.6% boys) aged 13 to 15 years. Results: Of the total sample, 49.9% registered at least one activity of moderate to vigorous intensity in the non-wear time activity diary. More adolescents registered an activity performed on a weekday than on a weekend day and the registered mean number of minutes of moderate to vigorous PA were higher on weekend days. Repeated-measures (M) ANOVA tests revealed a significant difference between the mean minutes with and without non-wear activities for all PA intensities, regardless of adolescents' socio-economic status or gender. More adolescents achieved the PA recommendations after inclusion of the non-wear activities irrespective of accelerometer thresholds used. Conclusions: The collection of information regarding non-wear time by non-wear time activity diaries when using accelerometers in 13-15-year-old adolescents can lead to different PA outcomes at the individual level and therefore can improve the ability to accurately measure PA