Change in sports activity and walking and cycling for transport since the COVID-19 pandemic – Results of the GEDA 2021 study

Background: Physical activity is a significant health promotion behaviour. COVID-19 pandemic mitigation measures, such as reducing social contact, closing sports facilities and working from home offices, may make it more difficult to engage in regular physical activity. Methods: The data collected between July and October 2021 from the nationally representative study German Health Update (GEDA 2021) were used. The activity behaviour is described by the change in the amount of sports activity as well as the amount of physical active transport (walking/cycling) since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. The sample comprises 2,985 participants aged 18 and older. Results: A quarter of the population reduced their sports activity compared to before the COVID-19 pandemic, while 12% increased their sports activity and 38% reported no change. In terms of physical active transport, it shows that 15% reduced the amount, 17% increased it and 55% maintained it. Compared to younger adults, older adults were more likely to maintain their activity behaviour rather than reduce or increase it. Conclusion: Even before the pandemic, physical inactivity was common among the population. The high proportion of adults who reduced their sports activity during the pandemic underlines the need for effective measures to promote physical activity

Status quo und Einflussfaktoren der körperlichen Aktivität sowie der Bildschirmmediennutzung im frühen Kindesalter

Einleitung – Körperliche Aktivität im frühen Kindesalter wirkt sich positiv auf die psy-chische und physische Entwicklung von Kindern aus, während vermehrte Inaktivität in Form von Medienkonsum die Entstehung von Übergewicht und Adipositas fördern kann. Die wenigen bisher veröffentlichen Studien weisen darauf hin, dass bereits im Vorschulalter die Mehrheit des Tages mit sitzenden Tätigkeiten verbracht wird. Da über das Aktivitätsverhalten von in Deutschland lebenden unter sechsjährigen Kindern wenig bekannt ist, wurde in der vorliegenden Studie die körperliche Aktivität und die Mediennutzung mit aktuellen Empfehlungen verglichen sowie potenzielle Einflussfak-toren des Aktivitäts- und Inaktivitätsverhaltens untersucht. Methodik – In 12 Kinderarztpraxen im Kölner Raum wurden über drei Jahre strukturierte Interviews mit Eltern von unter sechsjährigen Kindern geführt. Darüber hinaus wurden die Kinder gemessen und gewogen sowie der BMI berechnet. Einschlusskriterien waren, dass die Kinder zwischen einem und fünf Jahren alt waren, laufen konnten und keine chronischen Krankheiten hatten. Insgesamt nahmen 504 Kinder (53,1% männlich) mit einem durchschnittlichen Alter von 3,3 Jahren teil. Ergebnisse – 42,5% der ein- bis fünfjährigen Kinder erreichten die empfohlene körper-liche Aktivitätszeit der NASPE (2009) von mindestens 90 Minuten Tag und 45,6% waren angeleitet körperlich aktiv. Eine Mediennutzungsdauer von 60 Minuten am Tag über-schritten 20,9% der Kinder. Hingegen der Empfehlung noch keine Bildschirmmedien zu nutzen, taten dies bereits 55,6% der ein- und zweijährigen Kinder. Prädiktoren der an-geleiteten sportlichen Aktivität waren das Alter, der Schulabschluss der Eltern, der Migrationsstatus, der Medienkonsum, die sportliche Aktivität der Mutter und der Er-hebungszeitpunkt; Prädiktoren des Medienkonsums von mind. 60 Minuten waren das Alter, der Schulabschluss der Eltern, der Migrationsstatus und die angeleitete Aktivität und Prädiktoren des Medienkonsums von unter dreijährigen Kindern waren das Alter, der Migrationsstatus und der Erhebungszeitpunkt. Keiner der untersuchten Faktoren stand in signifikantem Zusammenhang mit der körperlichen Aktivität von mind. 90 Mi-nuten am Tag. Diskussion –Bereits jedes zweite Kind im Alter unter sechs Jahren nahm an angeleite-ten Sportangeboten teil und eine Mediennutzung von einer Stunde am Tag wurde mehrheitlich nicht überschritten. Jedoch zeigten sich bei der Gesamtaktivität aller Kin-der und der Mediennutzung von unter dreijährigen Kindern Ansatzpunkte zur Präven-tion eines inaktiven Lebensstils im frühen Kindesalter. Insbesondere sozial schwächer gestellte Familien benötigen Unterstützung, so dass auch ihren Kindern von Beginn an eine gesunde Entwicklung ermöglicht wird. In weiteren Studien sollten die vorliegen-den Ergebnisse durch eine objektive Erhebung der körperlichen Aktivität und mit einer repräsentativen Stichprobe überprüft werden. Introduction – Physical activity has positive effects on the mental and physical devel-opment in early childhood, whereas screen-based media use is associated with devel-opment of overweight and obesity. The few published studies show that already pre-school-aged children spent most time of the day with sedentary behaviors. Since little is known about the physical activity and inactivity behavior of children aged less than six years living in Germany, the physical activity and the media use were compared with current recommendations as well as their potential correlates were analyzed in the present study. Methods – Over three years structured interviews were conducted with parents of children aged one to five years at paediatrics located in the Cologne area. Additionally, the body height and weight of children were measured for the calculation of the BMI. As a criterion for inclusion, children had to be aged between one and five years and were not supposed to suffer from chronic diseases. 504 children (53.1% male) partici-pated in the study with a mean age of 3.3 years. Results – 42.5% of the children achieved the recommended 90 minutes of physical ac-tivity a day (NASPE, 2009) and 45.6% participated in structured physical activities. 20.9% of the children used screen-based media for more than 60 minutes a day. Even though children younger than three years should not use electronic media at all, 55.6% of this age group used media. Predictors of the participation in structured physical ac-tivities were age, educational level of the parents, migration background, media use, physical activity of the mother and season; predictors of the media use for at least 60 minutes a day were age, educational level of the parents, migration background and structured physical activity. Finally, predictors of the media use of children younger than three years were age, migration background and season. None of the analyzed factors was associated with a physical activity of at least 90 minutes a day. Discussion –Already every second child participated in structured activities and most of the children used electronic media for less than an hour a day. However, the empirical results also suggest that preventive measures against the development of inactive life-styles during early childhood should be focused on daily physical activity of all children and media use of children younger than three years. Moreover, such measures should be particularly targeted at families of low social status (low educational level etc.), as to support them in providing possibilities of a healthy development of their children from the very beginning. The present results should be verified with the use of objec-tive methods for the collection of physical activity data and with a representative study population

Determinants of organised sports participation patterns during the transition from childhood to adolescence in Germany: results of a nationwide cohort study

Abstract Background Organised sports (OS) participation is an important health behaviour but it seems to decline from childhood to adolescence. The aim of this study was to investigate OS participation patterns from childhood to adolescence and potential determinants for those patterns. Methods Data from the German Health Interview and Examination Survey for Children and Adolescents (KiGGS) cohort study with a 6 year follow-up period were used (KiGGS0: 2003-06, KiGGS1: 2009-12). Participants aged 6–10 years at KiGGS0, who were aged 12–16 at KiGGS1, were included (n = 3790). The outcome variable was ‘OS participation’ between KiGGS0 and KiGGS1 with the categories ‘maintenance’ (reference), ‘dropout’, ‘commencement’ and ‘nonparticipation’. Relative risk ratios (RRRs) were calculated using multinomial logistic regression to identify potential predictors for OS patterns. Socio-demographic, family-related, health-related, behavioural and environmental factors were considered as independent variables. Results 48.5 % maintained OS, 20.5 % dropped out, 12.3 % commenced OS between KiGGS0 and KiGGS1 and 18.7 % did not participate at both times. The RRRs for dropout rather than maintenance were 0.6 (95 % Cl 0.5–0.7) for boys versus girls, 1.5 (1.3–1.9) for the age group 8–10 versus 6–7 years, 0.7 (0.5–0.9) for high versus intermediate parental education, 1.4 (1.1–1.8) for low versus middle household income, 1.4 (1.0–1.8) for below-average versus average motor fitness. The RRRs for commencement rather than maintenance were 0.6 (0.5–0.8) for boys versus girls, 0.6 (0.5–0.8) for the age group 8–10 versus 6–7 years, 1.5 (1.1–2.1) for low versus intermediate parental education, 1.5 (1.1–2.0) for low versus middle household income, 0.7 (0.5–1.0) for no single-parent versus single parent family, 1.8 (1.3–2.5) for below-average and 0.6 (0.4–0.8) for above-average versus average motor fitness, and 1.4 (1.1–1.9) for high versus middle screen-based media use. The RRRs for abstinence rather than maintenance were 0.6 (0.4–0.7) for boys versus girls, 1.5 (1.1–2.0) for low versus intermediate parental education, 2.2 (1.7–2.8) for low and 0.6 (0.5–0.8) for high versus middle household income, 1.6 (1.2–2.1) for psychopathological problems versus no problems, 1.7 (1.3–2.2) for below-average and 0.4 (0.3–0.6) for above-average versus average motor fitness, and 1.6 (1.0–2.6) for rural versus metropolitan residential area. Conclusions OS participation rates among all children living in Germany need to be improved. More tailored offerings are needed which consider the preferences and interests of adolescents as well as a cooperation between public health actors to reduce barriers to OS

How much do adults sit? Result from the German Health Update (GEDA 2019/2020-EHIS)

Background: Sedentary behaviour is increasingly perceived as a risk factor for the development of diseases and for increased mortality. In particular, increased time spent sitting in combination with low physical activity seems to have negative health consequences. Methods: In the nationwide cross-sectional study German Health Update (GEDA 2019/2020-EHIS), the indicator ‘sitting’ was captured by the self-report of the participants. Results: For at least eight hours a day, 16.7% of women and 22.3% of men sit: Men more often than women, younger persons more often than older persons and the proportion increases significantly from the low to the high education group. Similarly, about one fifth of adults in Germany sit for at least four hours a day and do not engage in physical activity in their leisure time. Conclusion: The results indicate that preventive measures are needed to reduce time spent sitting and increase physical activit

Veränderung des Sporttreibens und der aktiven Wegstrecken seit der COVID-19-Pandemie – Ergebnisse der Studie GEDA 2021

Hintergrund: Körperliche Aktivität ist ein bedeutendes Verhalten zur Gesundheitsförderung. Die Maßnahmen zur Eindämmung der COVID-19-Pandemie, wie beispielsweise die Reduktion sozialer Kontakte, die Schließung von Sportstätten sowie das Arbeiten im Homeoffice, können die Ausübung regelmäßiger körperlicher Aktivität erschweren. Methode: Es wurden die zwischen Juli und Oktober 2021 erhobenen Daten der bundesweit repräsentativen Befragungsstudie Gesundheit in Deutschland aktuell (GEDA 2021) genutzt. Beschrieben wird das Aktivitätsverhalten anhand der Veränderung des Umfangs des Sporttreibens sowie der aktiv zurückgelegten Wegstrecken (Gehen/Radfahren) seit Beginn der COVID- 19-Pandemie. Die Stichprobe umfasst 2.985 Personen ab 18 Jahren. Ergebnisse: Ein Viertel der Bevölkerung hat das Sporttreiben, im Vergleich zur Zeit vor der COVID-19-Pandemie, reduziert, während 12 % mehr Sport trieben und 38 % keine Veränderung berichteten. In Bezug auf das aktive Zurücklegen von Wegstrecken zeigt sich, dass 15 % den Umfang reduzierten, 17 % ihn steigerten und 55 % ihn beibehielten. Verglichen mit Jüngeren behielten ältere Personen ihr Aktivitätsverhalten eher bei anstatt es zu reduzieren oder zu steigern. Schlussfolgerung: Bereits vor der Pandemie war körperliche Inaktivität in der Bevölkerung verbreitet. Der hohe Anteil an Personen, der seine Sportaktivität in der Pandemie reduzierte, unterstreicht die Notwendigkeit effektiver Maßnahmen zur Bewegungsförderung

The role of personality traits and social support in relations of health-related behaviours and depressive symptoms

Background: Previous evidence has suggested that physically inactive individuals and extensive media users are at high risk for experiencing depressive symptoms. We examined personality traits and perceived social support as potential moderators of this association. Personality and perceived social support were included as two of the most frequently considered variables when determining predispositioning factors for media use phenomena also discussed in relation to physical activity. Methods: We analysed cross-sectional data from 1402 adults (18–31 years old) who participated in a national health survey in Germany (KiGGS, Study on the health of children and adolescents in Germany, wave 2). The data included one-week accelerometer assessments as objective indicators of physical activity, self-reported media use, depressive symptoms, perceived social support and Big 5 personality traits. An elastic net regression model was fit with depressive symptoms as outcome. Ten-fold cross-validation was implemented. Results: Amongst the main effects, we found that high media use was positively correlated with depressive symptoms, whereas physical activity was not correlated. Looking at support and individual differences as moderators, revealed that PC use was more strongly correlated with depressive symptoms in cases of low levels of perceived social support. Positive associations of social media use with depressive symptoms were more pronounced, whereas negative associations of moderate to vigorous physical activity with depressive symptoms were less pronounced in extraverts than they were in introverts. Conclusions: Results highlight the importance of considering individual factors for deriving more valid recommendations on protective health behaviours.Peer Reviewe

Measurement of Physical Activity and Sedentary Behavior by Accelerometry Among a Nationwide Sample from the KiGGS and MoMo Study: Study Protocol

Background: Currently, no nationwide objective physical activity data exists for children and adolescents living in Germany. The German Health Interview and Examination Survey for Children and Adolescents (KiGGS) and the Motorik-Modul study (MoMo) is a national cohort study that has incorporated accelerometers in its most recent data collection wave (wave 2, since 2014). This wave 2 marks the first nationwide collection of objective data on the physical activity of children and adolescents living in Germany. Objective: The purpose of this protocol is to describe the methods used in the KiGGS and MoMo study to capture the intensity, frequency, and duration of physical activity with accelerometers. Methods: Participants (N=11,003, aged 6 to 31 years) were instructed to wear an ActiGraph GT3X+ or wGT3X-BT accelerometer laterally on the right hip. Accelerometers were worn on consecutive days during waking hours, including at least 4 valid weekdays and 1 weekend day (wear time >8 hours) in the evaluation. A nonwear time protocol was also implemented. Results: Data collection was completed by October 2017. Data harmonization took place in 2018. The first accelerometer results from this wave were published in 2019, and detailed analyses are ready to be submitted in 2020. Conclusions: This study protocol provides an overview of technical details and basic choices when using accelerometers in large-scale epidemiological studies. At the same time, the restrictions imposed by the specified filters and the evaluation routines must be taken into account

Wie viel sitzen Erwachsene? Ergebnisse der Studie Gesundheit in Deutschland aktuell (GEDA 2019/2020-EHIS)

Hintergrund: Sitzendes Verhalten wird zunehmend als ein Risikofaktor für die Entstehung von Erkrankungen und für eine erhöhte Sterblichkeit wahrgenommen. Insbesondere erhöhte Sitzzeiten in Kombination mit geringer körperlicher Aktivität scheinen negative Gesundheitsfolgen zu haben. Methode: In der bundesweiten Querschnittstudie Gesundheit in Deutschland aktuell (GEDA 2019/2020-EHIS) wurde der Indikator „Sitzen“ durch die Selbstangabe der Teilnehmenden erfasst. Ergebnisse: Für mindestens acht Stunden am Tag sitzen 16,7 % der Frauen und 22,3 % der Männer: Männer häufiger als Frauen, Jüngere häufiger als Ältere und der Anteil nimmt von der unteren zur oberen Bildungsgruppe deutlich zu. Ebenso sitzt etwa ein Fünftel der Erwachsenen in Deutschland mindestens vier Stunden am Tag und übt keine körperliche Aktivität in der Freizeit aus. Schlussfolgerung: Die Ergebnisse weisen darauf hin, dass präventive Maßnahmen notwendig sind, um Sitzzeiten zu reduzieren und körperliche Aktivität zu steiger

Comparison of self-reported & device-based, measured physical activity among children in Germany

As children show a more complex but less structured movement behavior than adults, assessment of their many spontaneous and impulsive movements is a challenge for physical activity (PA) assessment. Since neither questionnaires nor accelerometers enable optimal detection of all facets of PA, a multimodal, combined approach of self-reported and device-based methods is recommended. Based on the number of days on which the participants reached the physical activity (PA) values given in the WHO guideline, this study examines 1) the difference between self-reported and device-based, measured PA and 2) whether PA differences between age and gender groups obtained by two methods are comparable.Peer Reviewe

The relationship of self-reported and device-based measures of physical activity and health-related quality of life in adolescents

"Background: Physical activity (PA) has benefcial efects on health and health-related quality of life (HRQoL), which is a protective factor of illness and mortality. The purpose of this examination was to investigate if self-reported and device-based measures of PA were related to HRQoL in adolescents. Methods: Participants (N=1565; 54.3% female; Mage=14.37 years, SDage=1.99) were recruited from 167 sample points across Germany. Adolescents self-reported their PA, supplemented by a 1-week examination of device-based PA using accelerometry. Additionally, they completed the multidimensional KIDSCREEN-27 to assess HRQoL. Results: Results showed that self-reported PA was correlated with overall HRQoL, Physical Well-Being, Psychological Well-Being, Social Support & Peers, and School Environment, whereas device-based PA was only correlated with Physi‑ cal as well as Psychological Well-Being. Further, self-reported PA signifcantly predicted all facets of HRQoL except for Autonomy and Parent Relations, whereas device-based PA solely heightened the amount of explained variance in the Physical Well-Being subscale. Conclusions: Findings demonstrate the importance of self-reported PA as it is related to almost all facets of HRQoL. Both measures of PA are not congruent in their relationship with HRQoL and thus implications have to be carefully considered. Future studies should investigate the direct efect of PA on HRQoL and health in a longitudinal approach to account for the causality of efects.