[Health-related physical fitness in Brazilian adolescents from areas having a medium/low Human Development Index].
OBJECTIVE
Evaluating health-related, physical fitness (HRPF) in adolescents from a town having a medium/low Human Development Index (HDI).


METHODS
This was a descriptive study involving 627 adolescents (266 boys and 361 girls) from public schools aged 14 to 17. Anthropometric measurements were obtained and the students were given motor tests analysed according to the cut-off points suggested by US Physical Best fitness standards (1988).


RESULTS
Low physical fitness was observed amongst the students being studied, thereby presenting a health risk in terms of flexibility (40.8 %), muscle strength/endurance (98.5 %) and cardio respiratory fitness (35.4 %); 25 % of the students did not fulfil the body composition criteria. Overall classification in the three motor tests revealed a high percentage of students from both genders (boys: 99.6 % and girls: 100 %) who did not fulfil the preestablished criteria for having a satisfactory level of physical fitness.


CONCLUSIONS
The results indicated that implementing intervention aimed at the school-age population having poor HRPF is of fundamental importance.
Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Educação Física, Florianópolis, SC, Brasil. petroski@cds.ufsc.br
Edio Luiz
EL
Petroski
Adelson Fernandes
AF
da Silva
Adriana Bispo
AB
Rodrigues
Andreia
A
Pelegrini
D000293:Adolescent; D000886:Anthropometry; D001823:Body Composition; D001938:Brazil; D002320:Cardiovascular Physiological Phenomena; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D053580:Muscle Strength; D050177:Overweight / Q000453:epidemiology; D010807:Physical Endurance; D010809:Physical Fitness; D011204:Poverty Areas; D012924:Social Conditions; D014505:Urban Population