title: Cardiorespiratory fitness and fatness are associated with health complaints and health risk behaviors in youth.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  We examined the association of cardiorespiratory fitness and fatness with health complaints and health risk behaviors in 691 (323 girls) Spanish children aged 6 to 17.9.
  
  
  METHODS
  Health complaints and health risk behaviors were self-reported using items of the Health Behavior in School-aged Children questionnaire. Weight and height were measured and body mass index was computed. Cardiorespiratory fitness was measured by the 20-m shuttle-run test, and youth categorized as fit/unfit.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Unfit youth were more likely to report health complaints sometime (OR: 2.556, 95% CI: 1.299-5.031; and OR: 1.997, 95% CI: 1.162-3.433, respectively) and health risk behaviors such as drinking alcohol sometime (OR: 5.142, 95% CI: 1.214-21.783; and OR: 2.413, 95% CI: 1.484-3.923) than their fit counterparts. Overweight-obese youth were more likely to report health complaints (OR: 1.732, 95% CI: 1.019-2.945; and OR: 1.983, 95% CI: 1.083-3.629, respectively). The analysis of the combined influence of fitness and fatness revealed that fit youth had lower health complaints index than the fat-unfit and unfat-unfit groups (all P < .05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Low fitness and overweight-obesity increased the risk of having health complaints in youth, yet high levels of cardiorespiratory fitness might overcome deleterious effects of overweight-obesity on health complaints.
authors.affiliation: Dept of Physical Education, University of Cadiz, Puerto Real, Spain.
authors.forename: José
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Castro-Piñero
authors.forename: Carmen
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Padilla-Moledo
authors.forename: Francisco B
authors.initials: FB
authors.lastname: Ortega
authors.forename: Diego
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Moliner-Urdiales
authors.forename: Xiaofen
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Keating
authors.forename: Jonatan R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Ruiz
mesh_terms: D000273:Adipose Tissue; D000293:Adolescent; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000503:physiopathology; D015992:Body Mass Index; D002648:Child; D005080:Exercise Test / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009765:Obesity / Q000503:physiopathology*; D050177:Overweight / Q000503:physiopathology; D010809:Physical Fitness / Q000502:physiology*; D012309:Risk-Taking; D057566:Self Report; D012907:Smoking / Q000503:physiopathology; D013030:Spain; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires