title: Active commuting and physical activity in adolescents from Europe: results from the HELENA study.
abstract: We assessed commuting patterns in adolescents from 10 European cities and examined associations with physical activity (PA). A total of 3112 adolescents were included. PA was objectively measured with accelerometry. Commuting patterns and overall PA were self-reported using questions from the International Physical Activity Questionnaire modified for adolescents (IPAQ-A). Adolescents reported to spend 30 min (15,60) [expressed as median (25th, 75th percentiles)] walking. In boys, associations between active commuting (walking and biking) and PA levels were observed for moderate, moderate-to-vigorous and overall PA. In girls, these associations were observed for moderate and moderate-to-vigorous PA (walking). Similar results were found with the IPAQ-A. We observed positive associations between overall commuting and PA levels in European adolescents, yet due to the cross-sectional study design we cannot state the direction of these. Future studies should address the causation between active commuting and PA levels.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physical Education and Sport, University of Granada, Spain.
authors.forename: Palma
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Chillón
authors.forename: Francisco B
authors.initials: FB
authors.lastname: Ortega
authors.forename: Jonatan R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Ruiz
authors.forename: Ilse
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: De Bourdeaudhuij
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Martínez-Gómez
authors.forename: Germán
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Vicente-Rodriguez
authors.forename: Kurt
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Widhalm
authors.forename: Dénes
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Molnar
authors.forename: Frédéric
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Gottrand
authors.forename: Marcela
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: González-Gross
authors.forename: Dianne S
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Ward
authors.forename: Luis A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Moreno
authors.forename: Manuel J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Castillo
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sjöström
mesh_terms: D000054:Acceleration; D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior / Q000502:physiology*; D000367:Age Factors; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001642:Bicycling / Q000502:physiology*; D015992:Body Mass Index; D005060:Europe; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D009043:Motor Activity / Q000502:physiology*; D057185:Sedentary Behavior; D057566:Self Report; D012737:Sex Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D016138:Walking / Q000502:physiology*