title: Health-related physical fitness is associated with selected sociodemographic and behavioral factors in Brazilian school children.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  This study investigated the association between sociodemographic and behavioral factors and health standards based on physical fitness component scores in a sample of Brazilian schoolchildren.
  
  
  METHODS
  A sample of 1457 girls and 1392 boys aged 6 to 18 years performed a test battery of 5 items: 1) sit-and-reach, 2) curl-up, 3) trunk-lift, 4) push-up, and 5) progressive endurance run (PACER). The cut-off scores for gender and age suggested by the FitnessGram were adopted.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The findings showed that the sociodemographic and behavioral factors significantly associated with the ability of schoolchildren of meeting the health standards varied according to the fitness test. In the 5 tests used girls presented lower chance of meeting the health standards. Age and socioeconomic class were negatively associated with the performance in all physical tests. Schoolchildren aged ≤ 9 years or from families of lowest socioeconomic class presented approximately twice the chance of meeting the health standards than those aged ≥ 15 years and from more privileged families, specifically in the push-up (OR = 2.40; 95% CI 2.01-2.82) and PACER (OR = 2.18; 95% CI 1.84-2.54) tests.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Interventions to promote health-related physical fitness should not only consider gender and age of schoolchildren, but also selected sociodemographic and behavioral factors, especially socioeconomic class and leisure activities.
authors.affiliation: Dept of Physical Education and Sport, State University of Londrina, Brazil.
authors.forename: Dartagnan P
authors.initials: DP
authors.lastname: Guedes
authors.forename: Jaime
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Miranda Neto
authors.forename: Vitor Pires
authors.initials: VP
authors.lastname: Lopes
authors.forename: António José
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Silva
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001938:Brazil; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D002648:Child; D016001:Confidence Intervals; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005080:Exercise Test; D005260:Female; D006293:Health Promotion / Q000379:methods*; D006304:Health Status; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D016017:Odds Ratio; D010807:Physical Endurance / Q000502:physiology*; D010809:Physical Fitness; D012307:Risk Factors; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors