Physical activity among ethnically diverse college students.
The authors compared physical activity patterns among 874 Asian, 332 African, 1,101 White, and 529 Hispanic American college students aged 18 to 25 years. According to self-report responses, 46.7% of the sample did not engage in vigorous physical activity and 16.7% were physically inactive. Among women, ethnic-specific rates of physical inactivity were Asian, 28.1%; African, 23.5%; White, 17.4%; and Hispanic, 20.3%. For men, rates of inactivity were Asian 11.7%; African, 7.7%; White, 12.0%; and Hispanic, 13.8. Weight-training activity, youthful physical activity, and TV viewing accounted for a significant portion of the variance in physical activity levels (13.1% for women and 14.8% for men). The results of this study support the need for physical activity interventions for college students, particularly minorities.
Suminski
Richard R
RR
School of Physical Activity and Educational Services, The Ohio State University, Columbus 43210-1224, USA. suminski.1@osu.edu
Petosa
Rick
R
Utter
Alan C
AC
Zhang
James J
JJ
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D000367:Age Factors; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D000886:Anthropometry; D001294:Attitude to Health / Q000208:ethnology*; D018864:Cultural Diversity; D005006:Ethnicity / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior / Q000208:ethnology*; D006630:Hispanic or Latino / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D008019:Life Style / Q000208:ethnology*; D008297:Male; D010809:Physical Fitness; D011336:Probability; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012494:Sampling Studies; D012737:Sex Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014481:United States; D044465:White People / Q000706:statistics & numerical data