Six-year trend in active commuting to school in Spanish adolescents: The AVENA and AFINOS studies
Background: Promoting daily routine activities, such as active commuting to school, may have important health implications for young people. Purpose: The aim of the study was to examine the secular trend of active commuting to school in Spanish adolescents over a 6-year period (2001-2002 to 2006-2007). We also examined several factors that might explain this trend. Methods: Data comes from two separate cross-sectional studies, both representatives from the city of Madrid (Spain): AVENA and AFINOS studies. These took place in 2001-2002 and 2006-2007 and included 415 (198 girls) and 891 (448 girls) adolescents aged 13-17, respectively. Commuting to school was assessed using a standardized question about their habitual mode of transportation to school: walking, cycling, bus/subway, car, or motorcycle. Chi-square and binary logistic regression were used. Results: Percentage of active commuting girls decreased significantly from 61 % to 48 % (p = 0.002) from 2001-2002 to 2006-2007. Walking declined from 61 % to 46 % and the use of bus/subway increased from 25 % to 37 % in girls. Girls belonging to average/small families had lower odds of being active commuters than girls of large families (OR, 95 % CI: 0.69, 0.48 to 0.98). There were no significant differences in mode of commuting to school for boys (p = 0.269). Conclusion: Spanish adolescent girls in 2007-2008 had lower levels of active commuting to school, mainly walking, than their counterparts 6 years before. Belonging to a large family was related with higher active commuting in girls. © 2012 International Society of Behavioral Medicine.
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | artículo biblioteca |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Springer
2013
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| Subjects: | Active commuting to school, AVENA, Adolescence, AFINOS, |
| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/10261/90284 |
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