Physical fitness among 6th grade students and evaluation with the normative reference values

The objective of this study was to compare Estonian 6th grade students’ physical fitness level with normative values from ALPHA fitness test and international normative 20 m shuttle run values. The following healthrelated fitness components were assessed: cardiorespiratory fitness, flexibility, muscular strength, muscular endurance and speed, as a skillrelated fitness component. Physical fitness results were evaluated with the ALPHA health-related fitness test battery for children and adolescents and with normative 20 m shuttle run values. Students from 6th grade (n=178) participated in the study. Physical fitness performance was not signi ficantly different between boys and girls, except for flexibility and upper body muscle strength and endurance. Boys’ percentage in very low and low level was higher on every test compared to girls’ results based on normative values. The results of the research indicate the importance to measure the physical fitness of schoolchildren and to compare them with the evaluation scales to plan and carry out more PE lessons focusing on physical fitness development. Further research is needed to evaluate students’ physical fitness levels among different age groups. Physical fitness development is urgently needed and should be included in school curriculum

Kehaline kirjaoskus – uus hariduslik eesmärk

Viimase kahekümne aasta jooksul on märgatavalt suurenenud kehalise kirjaoskuse alaste uuringutulemuste avaldamine. Kehalist kirjaoskust kirjeldatakse kui inimese motivatsiooni, enesekindlust, kehalist kompetentsust, teadmisi ja mõistmist kehalise aktiivsuse väärtusest ja isiklikku vastutust selles. Kehaline kirjaoskus toob välja iga inimese võimalused, individuaalsuse ja võimekuse kehalise kirjaoskuse omandamisel. Koolitasandi uuringud keskenduvad kehalise kirjaoskuse kujundamise õpetuslikule aspektile ja selle tulemusel ka muutuvale traditsioonilisele spordikeskse lähenemisega kehalisele kasvatusele. Kehalise kirjaoskuse eesmärk on luua eeldused, et inimene oskaks tervislikult elada ning tervisliku eluviisiga kaasnevat potentsiaali rakendada. Siinse artikli eesmärk on anda ülevaade kehalise kirjaoskuse olemusest ja komponentidest rahvusvaheliste teadusuuringute kaudu.  Summar

Eesti õpilaste liikumisaktiivsus koolipäeva jooksul

Taust ja eesmärgid. Aktiivne liikumine peaks kuuluma kõigi laste ja noorte igapäevaellu, kuna see toetab mitmekülgselt nende arengut ja heaolu. Uuringu eesmärk oli kirjeldada I ja II kooliastme õpilaste liikumisaktiivsuse (LA) taset ja kehaliselt mitteaktiivse aja (KMA) osakaalu koolipäeva eri osades.Metoodika. LA taseme selgitamiseks viidi detsembrist 2014 kuni maini 2015 läbi mõõtmised I ja II kooliastme õpilaste hulgas üle-eestilise juhuvalimi põhjal valitud 13 koolis. Õpilased (n = 636) kandsid aktseleromeetrit ja täitsid liikumispäevikut seitsmel järjestikusel päeval.Tulemused. I kooliastmes liikus LA soovituste kohaselt 29,3% ja II kooliastmes 17,5% (p = 0,003) õpilastest ning KMA moodustas kogu ärkveloleku ajast vastavalt 54,8% ja 62,7% (p < 0,001). Koolis viibitud ajast moodustas mõõdukas kuni tugev liikumisaktiivsus (MTLA) ligikaudu veerandi kogu päeva MTLAst (I kooliaste 23,6%; II kooliaste 28,5%). Kehalise kasvatuse tunnist 28,3% moodustas MTLA ning 29,5% oli KMA.Järeldused. Laste aktiivse liikumise osa koolipäeva jooksul moodustab olulise osa kogu päeva liikumisaktiivsusest, kuid siiski on õpilaste üldine LA tase madal. Seetõttu on vaja planeerida ja ellu viia tõenduspõhiseid sekkumisi, mis toetaks õpilaste liikumisaktiivsust ning vähendaks KMAd koolipäeva eri osades.Eesti Arst 2016; 95(11):716–72

Evaluation of Physical Fitness, Body Composition, and Adherence to Mediterranean Diet in Adolescents from Estonia: The AdolesHealth Study

Unhealthy lifestyles, low levels of physical fitness, and adherence to the Mediterranean diet (MD) are associated with bad quality of life and the development of a wide range of non-communicable diseases (NCDs). The current study aimed to evaluate the level of adherence to the MD in physical fitness performance and body composition parameters in children and adolescents of Estonia. Therefore, 413 adolescents (56% boys) from the city of Tartu completed the Mediterranean Diet Questionnaire (KIDMED) for analyzing the adherence to MD and performed the Alpha Fitness Test for measuring physical fitness and body composition. A 41.67% of low, 44.05% of average, and 14.28% of high adherence to MD was detected, without difference between genders (p = 0.747). In the Alpha Fitness battery, a higher performance was observed in all tests for boys vs. girls (p < 0.05). In relation to body composition, higher height, weight, and waist values were observed in boys (p < 0.05) and a lower body fat percentage (p < 0.01) without differences in body mass index (BMI; p = 0.906). The adherence to the MD is classified as average/low. Gender significantly influences all variables of the Alpha Fitness battery and anthropometrics measures excepting BMI. According the levels of adherence to the MD, no statistically different prevalence was observed for Non-Overweight (N-Oweight), Non-Overfat (N-Ofat), or Non-Overwaist (N-Owaist). Still, a risk factor for Overweight (Oweight) in boys with low adherence was observed in comparison to those with a mid-level of adherence to the MD

Evaluation of Physical Fitness, Body Composition, and Adherence to Mediterranean Diet in Adolescents from Estonia: The AdolesHealth Study

Unhealthylifestyles,lowlevelsofphysicalfitness,andadherencetotheMediterraneandiet (MD)areassociatedwithbadqualityoflifeandthedevelopmentofawiderangeofnon-communicable diseases (NCDs). The current study aimed to evaluate the level of adherence to the MD in physical fitness performance and body composition parameters in children and adolescents of Estonia. Therefore, 413 adolescents (56% boys) from the city of Tartu completed the Mediterranean Diet Questionnaire (KIDMED) for analyzing the adherence to MD and performed the Alpha Fitness Test for measuring physical fitness and body composition. A 41.67% of low, 44.05% of average, and 14.28% of high adherence to MD was detected, without difference between genders (p = 0.747). In the Alpha Fitness battery, a higher performance was observed in all tests for boys vs. girls (p < 0.05). In relation to body composition, higher height, weight, and waist values were observed in boys (p < 0.05) and a lower body fat percentage (p < 0.01) without differences in body mass index (BMI; p = 0.906). The adherence to the MD is classified as average/low. Gender significantly influences all variables of the Alpha Fitness battery and anthropometrics measures excepting BMI. According the levelsofadherencetotheMD,nostatisticallydifferentprevalencewasobservedforNon-Overweight (N-Oweight), Non-Overfat (N-Ofat), or Non-Overwaist (N-Owaist). Still, a risk factor for Overweight (Oweight) in boys with low adherence was observed in comparison to those with a mid-level of adherence to the MD

Association between Adherence to the Mediterranean Diet and Physical Fitness with Body Composition Parameters in 1717 European Adolescents: The AdolesHealth Study

Obesity, low levels of physical fitness, and unhealthy eating patterns are responsible for part of the health problems of adolescents today. The current study aimed at examining the association between the adherence to the Mediterranean diet (MD), through each answer to the items of the Adherence to the MD Questionnaire (KIDMED), and physical fitness with body composition parameters (body mass index (BMI), percentage of body fat, and waist circumference) in 1717 Europeanadolescents(N=900boys,N=817girls). Dataofbodycomposition,physicalfitnessresults, and the answers to KIDMED were analyzed by the Student’s t-test. Additionally, the effect size (ES) was calculated and a Chi-square test analyzed the proportion of participants with and without over waistcircumference,overfat,andoverweightineachKIDMEDquestion. Therelativeriskofsuffering over waist circumference, overfat and overweight in relation to the responses was calculated by Odd-Ratio. AdherencetotheMDdidnotinfluencetheconditionofoverwaistcircumference,overfat and overweight, although certain dietary habits were identified as risk factors for their development. Over waist circumference, overfat, and overweight boys and girls presented higher levels of body mass, waist circumference, body fat percentage, and BMI (p < 0.001; ES = 1.73–3.38), as well as lower levels of all the parameters of the physical fitness analyzed (p < 0.001; ES = 0.45–1.08), except the handgrip test. A direct relationship between fitness and over waist circumference, overfat, and overweight was found

Health-Related Physical Fitness in Adolescents from Spain, Estonia and Iceland : A Cross-Sectional, Quantitative Study

Funding Information: This work was supported by the fifth Research Program 2013–2016 (PPI2015-IV.5/PP2016- EBRV) of the University of Seville (Seville, Spain), the University of Iceland Research Fund (Reykjavik, Iceland) and project (2014-2021.1.05.20-0004) “Increasing the physical activity of schoolchildren”—funded by Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway through the EEA Grants and co-financed by the Ministry of Social Affairs, Republic of Estonia and the University of Tartu (Tartu, Estonia). Publisher Copyright: © 2022 by the authors.The benefits of physical fitness (PF) for health are well-known. Low PF significantly contributes to the prevalence of obesity in adolescents, with an increased risk of developing chronic diseases. The objectives of the present study were to explore the health-related PF components and body composition levels in adolescents in three European cities, and their differences. The present study is a cross-sectional, descriptive, and quantitative research effort with 1717 participants aged between 13–16 years (48% girls), enrolled in public and private secondary schools in Seville (Spain), Reykjavik (Iceland) and Tartu (Estonia). The ALPHA fitness battery test was used with the following tests: handgrip strength, standing broad jump, 4 × 10 m speed-agility, 20 m shuttle run, and anthropometric variables. Regarding body composition, differences were detected for city and gender in height (p < 0.001), weight (p < 0.001), body fat percentage (p < 0.001), and waist circumference (p < 0.001); but no differences were reported for BMI for both city (p = 0.150) and gender (p = 0.738). Similarly, concerning PF, it was detected statistically significant differences between cities and gender in handgrip strength (p < 0.001), jump test (p < 0.001), speed-agility test (p < 0.001), and cardiovascular endurance in both variables (p < 0.001). In total, 26.8% of the boys and 27.3% of the girls were categorized as overweight; 18.1% of the boys and 31.2% of the girls had an excessive percentage of fat mass; and 22.7% of the boys and 22.2% of the girls showed an excessive waist circumference. The participants from Seville presented the lowest results in PF tests. In contrast, Reykjavik, with the highest results in the endurance and speed-agility tests, and Tartu, with higher results in the manual grip strength and long jump tests, shared the highest results.Peer reviewe

Sleep Quality and Duration in European Adolescents (The AdolesHealth Study): A Cross-Sectional, Quantitative Study

Sleep is a vital element of adolescents’ overall health; it influences their body and mind and thus affects their quality of life. Adequate sleep quality and duration are essential for maintaining optimal metabolic health and lowering the risk of developing several medical conditions, such as cardiovascular disease. The current study aimed to assess the perceived sleep quality and duration of 1717 European adolescents from three different European countries (Spain, Iceland and Estonia) aged 13- to 16-years (900 boys, 817 girls) using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). A multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was performed to examine differences between groups and two-factor analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to analyze city and age differences. The probability of having poor sleep quality and duration was calculated by Odd-Ratio (OR). Our study found poor sleep quality in 44% of the boys and 53% of the girls, whereas 68% and 69%, respectively did not get the recommended hours of sleep (i.e., 8–10 h). No difference was found between adolescents from Estonia, Iceland and Spain regarding sleep duration. In contrast, Spanish and Estonian adolescents reported higher probabilities of having poor sleep quality. Finally, girls had a significantly higher probability of poor sleep quality than boys

European fitness landscape for children and adolescents: updated reference values, fitness maps and country rankings based on nearly 8 million test results from 34 countries gathered by the FitBack network

OBJECTIVES (1) To develop reference values for health-related fitness in European children and adolescents aged 6-18 years that are the foundation for the web-based, open-access and multilanguage fitness platform (FitBack); (2) to provide comparisons across European countries. METHODS This study builds on a previous large fitness reference study in European youth by (1) widening the age demographic, (2) identifying the most recent and representative country-level data and (3) including national data from existing fitness surveillance and monitoring systems. We used the Assessing Levels of PHysical Activity and fitness at population level (ALPHA) test battery as it comprises tests with the highest test-retest reliability, criterion/construct validity and health-related predictive validity: the 20 m shuttle run (cardiorespiratory fitness); handgrip strength and standing long jump (muscular strength); and body height, body mass, body mass index and waist circumference (anthropometry). Percentile values were obtained using the generalised additive models for location, scale and shape method. RESULTS A total of 7 966 693 test results from 34 countries (106 datasets) were used to develop sex-specific and age-specific percentile values. In addition, country-level rankings based on mean percentiles are provided for each fitness test, as well as an overall fitness ranking. Finally, an interactive fitness platform, including individual and group reporting and European fitness maps, is provided and freely available online (www.fitbackeurope.eu). CONCLUSION This study discusses the major implications of fitness assessment in youth from health, educational and sport perspectives, and how the FitBack reference values and interactive web-based platform contribute to it. Fitness testing can be conducted in school and/or sport settings, and the interpreted results be integrated in the healthcare systems across Europe

European fitness landscape for children and adolescents: updated reference values, fitness maps and country rankings based on nearly 8 million test results from 34 countries gathered by the FitBack network

Objectives (1) To develop reference values for health-related fitness in European children and adolescents aged 6–18 years that are the foundation for the web-based, open-access and multilanguage fitness platform (FitBack); (2) to provide comparisons across European countries. Methods This study builds on a previous large fitness reference study in European youth by (1) widening the age demographic, (2) identifying the most recent and representative country-level data and (3) including national data from existing fitness surveillance and monitoring systems. We used the Assessing Levels of PHysical Activity and fitness at population level (ALPHA) test battery as it comprises tests with the highest test–retest reliability, criterion/construct validity and health-related predictive validity: the 20 m shuttle run (cardiorespiratory fitness); handgrip strength and standing long jump (muscular strength); and body height, body mass, body mass index and waist circumference (anthropometry). Percentile values were obtained using the generalised additive models for location, scale and shape method. Results A total of 7 966 693 test results from 34 countries (106 datasets) were used to develop sex-specific and age-specific percentile values. In addition, country-level rankings based on mean percentiles are provided for each fitness test, as well as an overall fitness ranking. Finally, an interactive fitness platform, including individual and group reporting and European fitness maps, is provided and freely available online (www.fitbackeurope.eu). Conclusion This study discusses the major implications of fitness assessment in youth from health, educational and sport perspectives, and how the FitBack reference values and interactive web-based platform contribute to it. Fitness testing can be conducted in school and/or sport settings, and the interpreted results be integrated in the healthcare systems across Europe