Active commuting to school in children and adolescents: an opportunity to increase physical activity and fitness.
OBJECTIVE
The purpose was to describe the patterns of commuting to school in young people and to examine its associations with physical activity (PA) and cardiorespiratory fitness.


METHODS
The sample comprised 2271 Estonian and Swedish children and adolescents (1218 females) aged 9-10 years and 15-16 years. Data were collected in 1998/99. Mode of commuting to and from school was assessed by questionnaire. Time spent (min/day) in PA and average PA (counts/min) was measured by accelerometry. Cardiorespiratory fitness was assessed by means of a maximal cycle ergometer test.


RESULTS
Sixty-one percent of the participants reported active commuting to school (ACS). Estonian youth showed lower levels of ACS than Swedish (odds ratio, 0.64; 95% confidence interval, 0.53-0.76) and girls reported lower levels than boys (0.74; 0.62-0.88). ACS boys showed higher PA levels than non-ACS boys for moderate, vigorous, MVPA, and average PA levels (all p ≤ 0.01). Participants who cycled to school had higher cardiorespiratory fitness than walkers or passive travellers (p < 0.001).


CONCLUSIONS
Nearly two-thirds of the participants actively commuted to school. ACS may provide an opportunity to increase levels of daily PA, especially in boys, and cardiorespiratory fitness, especially if cycling. Public health strategies should develop and test ACS patterns to get more evidence and promote bike-friendly environments.
Chillón
Palma
P
Department of Physical Education and Sport, School of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences, University of Granada, Granada, Spain. pchillon@ugr.es
Ortega
Francisco B
FB
Ruiz
Jonatan R
JR
Veidebaum
Toomas
T
Oja
Leila
L
Mäestu
Jarek
J
Sjöström
Michael
M
D000293:Adolescent; D001642:Bicycling / Q000502:physiology; D002648:Child; D004957:Estonia; D015444:Exercise / Q000502:physiology; D005080:Exercise Test; D005260:Female; D006293:Health Promotion; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009043:Motor Activity / Q000502:physiology; D010809:Physical Fitness / Q000502:physiology; D012574:Schools; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013548:Sweden; D014186:Transportation; D016138:Walking / Q000502:physiology