title: Meeting the 2008 physical activity guidelines for Americans among U.S. youth.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Participation in physical activity brings health benefits for adolescents. However, limited data are available on the percentage of U.S. adolescents who engage in levels of aerobic and muscle-strengthening activities recommended in the 2008 Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans (2008 Guidelines).
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To examine the prevalence at which U.S. adolescents aged 12-17 years meet the 2008 Guidelines, and whether demographic and BMI variables influence that prevalence.
  
  
  METHODS
  Using data from an interviewer-administered self-report questionnaire in the 1999-2006 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (analyzed in 2011), estimates were made of the percentage of adolescents who engaged in recommended levels of aerobic and muscle-strengthening activities (≥60 minutes of aerobic activity/day and participation in muscle-strengthening activities ≥3 days/week).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Among 6547 U.S. adolescents aged 12-17 years, 16.3% (95% CI=14.9%, 17.9%) met both aerobic and muscle-strengthening guidelines; 14.7% (13.3%, 16.2%) met the aerobic guideline only, 21.3% (19.4%, 23.3%) met the muscle-strengthening guideline only, and 47.8% (45.4%, 50.1%) met neither guideline. Adjusted for covariates, odds of meeting either the aerobic or muscle-strengthening guideline only or both guidelines versus meeting neither guideline were (p<0.05) higher among boys than girls. The odds of meeting the aerobic guideline only were higher among underweight/normal-weight adolescents than among obese adolescents. No clear pattern was observed by family groups according to poverty-to-income ratio.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Less than 20% of adolescents reported engaging in recommended levels of both aerobic and muscle-strengthening activities.
authors: Epidemic Intelligence Service, CDC, Atlanta, GA, USA. songmin@umich.edu
authors: MinkYoung
authors: M
authors: Song
authors: Dianna D
authors: DD
authors: Carroll
authors: Janet E
authors: JE
authors: Fulton
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000367:Age Factors; D015992:Body Mass Index; D002648:Child; D015444:Exercise; D005260:Female; D017408:Guidelines as Topic; D015438:Health Behavior; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010349:Patient Compliance / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012737:Sex Factors; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology