title: Emerging evidence of the physical activity transition in Kenya.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Comparable data to examine the physical activity (PA) transition in African countries such as Kenya are lacking.
  
  
  METHODS
  We assessed PA levels from urban (UKEN) and rural (RKEN) environments to examine any evidence of a PA transition. Nine- to twelve-year-old children participated in the study: n = 96 and n = 73 children from UKEN and RKEN, respectively. Pedometers were used to estimate children's daily step count. Parental perception regarding their child's PA patterns was collected via questionnaire (n = 172).
  
  
  RESULTS
  RKEN children were more physically active than their UKEN counterparts with a mean average steps per day (± SE) of 14,700 ± 521 vs. 11,717 ± 561 (P < .0001) for RKEN vs. UKEN children respectively. 62.5% of the UKEN children spent 0 hours per week playing screen games compared with 13.1% of UKEN children who spent more than 11 hours per week playing screen games. Seventy percent of UKEN and 34% of RKEN parents reported being more active during childhood than their children respectively.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Results of this study are indicative of a PA transition in Kenya. Further research is needed to gather national data on the PA patterns of Kenyan children to minimize the likelihood of a public health problem due to physical inactivity.
authors.affiliation: Dept of Recreation Management and Exercise Science, Kenyatta University, Nairobi, Kenya.
authors.forename: Vincent Ochieng
authors.initials: VO
authors.lastname: Onywera
authors.forename: Kristi B
authors.initials: KB
authors.lastname: Adamo
authors.forename: Andrew W
authors.initials: AW
authors.lastname: Sheel
authors.forename: Judith N
authors.initials: JN
authors.lastname: Waudo
authors.forename: Michael Kipsugut
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Boit
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tremblay
mesh_terms: D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D002648:Child; D002669:Child Welfare; D003906:Developing Countries; D055317:Evidence-Based Practice; D005260:Female; D006293:Health Promotion / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D007630:Kenya; D008016:Life Change Events; D008297:Male; D009043:Motor Activity / Q000502:physiology*; D012424:Rural Population; D040241:Social Marketing; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014505:Urban Population