The Differences in Physical Activity Preferences and Practices among High versus Low Active Adolescents in Secondary Schools

This study aimed to (a) identify the differences in the preferred, practiced, and organized physical activity (PA) between high and low physically active Czech and Polish boys and girls and to (b) identify which types of PA are likely to be recommended by low active boys and girls. The research was carried out between 2010 and 2019 in the Czech Republic and Poland and included 6619 participants aged 15 to 19 years. The preferences and practices of the different types of PA and participation in organized PA were identified using a PA preference questionnaire and weekly PA was identified using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire-long form. Czech and Polish boys and girls who were low active preferred less physically demanding and more health-oriented PA compared with high active individuals. Power exercises and participation in organized PA are the most significant predictors of achieving at least 3 × 20 min of vigorous PA per week among low active individuals in both countries. Monitoring the trends in the preferred and practiced types of PA among boys and girls is crucial for the effective promotion of PA to low active boys and girls and positive changes in physical education and school health policy.

Comprehensive Nutrition Interventions in First Nation-Operated Schools in Canada

Comprehensive school-based nutrition interventions offer a promising strategy to support healthy eating for First Nations children. A targeted strategic review was performed to identify nutrition interventions in 514 First Nation-operated schools across Canada through their websites. Directed content analysis was used to describe if interventions used 1 or more of the 4 components of the Comprehensive School Health (CSH) framework. Sixty schools had interventions. Nearly all (n = 56, 93%) schools offered breakfast, snack, and (or) lunch programs (social and physical environment). About one-third provided opportunities for students to learn about traditional healthy Indigenous foods and food procurement methods (n = 18, 30%) (teaching and learning) or facilitated connections between the school and students’ families or the community (n = 16, 27%) (partnerships and services). Few schools (n = 10, 17%) had a nutrition policy outlining permitted foods (school policy). Less than 1% (n = 3) of interventions included all 4 CSH components. Results suggest that most First Nation-operated schools provide children with food, but few have nutrition interventions that include multiple CSH components. First Nation-operated schools may require additional financial and (or) logistical support to implement comprehensive school-based nutrition interventions, which have greater potential to support long-term health outcomes for children than single approaches.

COVID-19 surveillance in the Flemish school system: development of systematic data collection within the Public Health School System and descriptive analysis of cases reported between October 2020 and June 2021

Background The age specific distribution of SARS-CoV-2 cases in schools is not well described. The numbers recorded reflect the intensity of community transmission while being shaped by biases from age-dependent testing regimes and effective age-specific interventions. A case-surveillance system was introduced within the Flemish school and health-prevention network during the 2020-2021 school year. We present epidemiological data of in-school reported cases in pre-, primary and secondary schools based on the surveillance system, in conjunction with test data and community cases from October 2020 to June 2021. Methods We describe the development of the surveillance system and provide the number of reported cases and standardized rates per grade over time. We calculate absolute and relative differences between incidence cases by grade of primary (grades 1-6) and secondary-school (grades 7-12) and compare these to grades 7-8, relating them to non-pharmaceutical infection prevention interventions. Cumulative population incidences (IP) stratified by age, province and social-economic status (SES) of the school population are presented with their 95% confidence intervals (CI). Results A total of 59,996 COVID-19 cases were reported in the school surveillance system, with the highest population adjusted IP in grade 11-12 of 7.39% (95%CI 7.24-7.53) and ranging from 2.23–6.25% from pre-school through grade 10. Age-specific reduction in in-person teaching and introduction of masks, are temporally associated with decreases in incident cases by grades. Lower pupil SES is associated with increased cumulative cases (excess 2,739/100,000 pupils compared to highest SES tertile). Community testing volumes varied more for children compared to adults, with overall higher child test-positivity. Holidays influence capturing of cases by the system, however efficiency increased to above 75% after further automation and integration in existing structures. Conclusion Integration of case surveillance within an electronic school health system is feasible, provides data to follow up the epidemic evolution in schoolchildren and should be part of public health surveillance and pandemic preparedness. The relationship towards community transmission needs careful evaluation because of age-different testing regimens. In the Flemish region, case incidence within schools follows an age gradient that is mitigated through grade specific interventions, while differences by SES remain.

School Health Infrastructure and Students’ Elevated Body Mass Index

School-age children with overweight or obesity continue to be problematic in the United States, and are associated with many health, social, and financial problems. Schools provide an excellent venue in which to promote healthy weight in students, and school nurses are well-positioned to play an essential role in controlling obesity. The number of studies reporting relationships among school health infrastructure and prevalence of elevated Body Mass Index (BMI) is limited. The present study explored associations between three components of school health infrastructure (staff, services, budget) and the proportion overweight or obese 1st, 3rd, and 6th grade students, after controlling for selected factors (race, county education level, county poverty level, rurality). Study results supported an independent association between elevated BMI and school health staff. Additionally, independent associations between elevated BMI and the following covariates were supported: household income, race, and parents’ educational level. There is an ultimate need for well-designed studies addressing these associations.

Preserving rural school health during the COVID-19 pandemic: Indigenous citizen scientist perspectives from a qualitative study

<abstract> <p>This qualitative study is part of Smart Indigenous Youth, a digital health community trial involving rural schools in Saskatchewan, Canada. Secondary school administrators and educators were engaged as citizen scientists in rural Indigenous communities to understand rapid decision-making processes for preserving school health during the COVID-19 pandemic, and to inform evidence-based safe school policies and practices. After COVID-19 restrictions were implemented, key informant interviews and focus groups were conducted with school administrators and educators, respectively, to understand the impact of school responses and decision-making processes. Two independent reviewers conducted thematic analyses and compared themes to reach consensus on a final shortlist. Four main themes emerged from the administrator interviews, and six main themes were identified from the educator focus group discussions which revealed a pressing need for mental health supports for students and educators. The study findings highlight the challenges faced by schools in rural and remote areas during the COVID-19 pandemic, including school closures, students' reactions to closures, measures taken by schools to preserve health during the pandemic, and different approaches to implement for future closures. Citizen scientists developed a set of recommendations, including the need for structured communication, reflection meetings, adequate funding, and external monitoring and evaluation to guide evidence-based safe school policies and practices during the pandemic.</p> </abstract>

Gender and Sexuality in Physical Education and Health Curricula in Japan

This comparative study of gender messages in Japanese textbooks reveals a pattern of underlying sex discrimination as well as efforts at reform. There is a “hidden curriculum”—the presence of powerful, hegemonic messages that reinforce dominant social structural values of a gender binary—shaping the learning environment and sustaining structural inequalities. An effort to address the hidden curriculum of gender and sexuality biases in Japanese textbooks was published in 2020 through the National Elementary School Health textbooks and curriculum. This study analyzes existing gender messages permeating the explicit and hidden curriculum and reform efforts, employing mixed methods of content analysis and ethnographic observations.

Factors associated with the consumption of ultra-processed food by Brazilian adolescents: National Survey of School Health, 2015

ABSTRACT Objective: To identify the prevalence and factors associated with the consumption of ultra-processed foods by Brazilian adolescents. Methods: The sample was representative of adolescents and participants in the cross-sectional population-based study National Survey of School Health, 2015 edition (PeNSE-2015). A self-administered questionnaire was used for data collection. The variable weekly consumption of ultra-processed foods was considered, and consumption more than seven times a week was considered excessive. Descriptive and inferential analyses of demographic, socioeconomic, behavioral and environmental characteristics potentially associated with the outcome were performed. Poisson's multiple regression model was adjusted to control for confounding factors. Results: The prevalence of excessive consumption of ultra-processed foods among 16,324 adolescents in Brazil was 75.4%. Nine factors independently associated with this outcome were identified: age under 15 years (RR 1.08; p<0.001), daily sitting time greater than four hours (RR 1.13; p<0.001), eating while watching TV or studying more than four days a week (RR 1.09; p<0.001), daily TV time greater than three hours (RR 1.08; p<0.001), breakfast frequency less than four days a week (RR 1,03; p=0.001), having a cell phone (RR 1.12; p<0.001), absent maternal education (RR 0.88; p<0.001), being enrolled in a private school (RR 1.05; p=0.002) located in the urban area (RR 1.13; p=0.002). Conclusions: The results express the multifactorial characteristic of excessive consumption of ultra-processed foods and suggest the need for the development and implementation of health policies to guide the consumption of these foods and the importance of adopting healthy behaviors for this population group in both school and home environments.