United Nations Children’s Fund) as well as public health scientists have advocated for the recognition of access to active lifestyle opportunities as a human right. 2 – 6 Despite physical activity known benefits, physical inactivity remains a global pandemic, with 28% of adults and 81% of adolescents
Search Results
Breaking Barriers: An Innovative Tool to Assess the National and City-Level Physical Activity Policy Development to Practice Disconnect
Eugen Resendiz, Andrea Ramírez-Varela, Juliana Mejía-Grueso, Jane Moon, Josef Mitáš, Ross C. Brownson, Deborah Salvo, and Michael Pratt
Kansas State University Physical Activity Systems Framework: Integration of the Discipline of Kinesiology and Public Health
David A. Dzewaltowski, Mary McElroy, Timothy I. Musch, David C. Poole, and Craig A. Harms
Kinesiology is an academic discipline with a body of content that can be drawn on to support professions and to solve important public health problems. The Kansas State Physical Activity Systems Framework defines a new approach to structure the discipline. Central to the framework is the rejection of a kinesiology subdisciplinary approach and the adoption of an integrated “cell-to-society” systems approach. Each level of physical activity systems is addressed in undergraduate and graduate education and research. Supporting the framework are two research and education teams: exercise physiology and exercise behavioral science. These teams provide core integrated academic discipline content expertise and expertise for integrating professional application areas, such as public health. The framework has evolved over 20 years at Kansas State University, where today the Department of Kinesiology delivers high-quality extramurally-funded research; BS, MS, MPH, and PhD programs; and outreach in a cost-effective manner.
Evaluation of the Physical Activity and Public Health Course for Researchers
Kelly R. Evenson, Joan M. Dorn, Ricky Camplain, Russell R. Pate, and David R. Brown
Background:
From 1995–2013, an 8-day Physical Activity and Public Health Course for Researchers has been offered yearly in the United States.
Methods:
In 2013, an evaluation quantified time that fellows spent in different course offerings, surveyed fellows on course impact, documented grant funding, and identified fellow participation on leading physical activity-related journals.
Results:
The number of fellows that attended the course ranged from 20 per year to 35 per year. Fellows who participated in the web survey (n = 322) agreed that the course: met their expectations (99%), had a positive impact on the physical activity research or practice work they did (98%), and helped increase their professional networking in the field (93%). Following the course, 73% of fellows had further contact with course faculty and 71% had further contact with other fellows. From the National Institutes of Health, 117 grants were awarded to 82 fellows (21% of eligible fellows). Out of 14 journals reviewed, 11 had at least 1 fellow on their staff as editor, associate editor, or editorial board member.
Conclusion:
The Physical Activity and Public Health Course for Researchers helps address a training need by providing instruction and building capacity in the US and abroad for conducting research on physical activity and public health.
The Role of the Public Health Sector in Promoting Physical Activity: National, State, and Local Applications
Gregory W. Heath
Background:
Regular physical activity has been demonstrated to protect against coronary heart disease, Type 2 diabetes mellitus, selected cancers, hypertension, obesity, and other chronic conditions. Therefore, the public health significance of promoting physical activity and preventing inactivity has become a well-established agenda for public health agencies at all levels.
Methods:
A secondary search of the literature, focusing on existing evidence reviews, was conducted to identify effective or promising public health physical activity interventions. Further examination of published evidence-based programs also was carried out to supplement the known evidence base. Intervention strategies were selected using criteria prescribed by each of the systematic reviews to yield categories of intervention effectiveness.
Key recommendations:
The selected physical activity interventions conformed to the domains identified by The Guide to Community Preventive Services. Recommended evidenced-based strategies from within the domain of informational approaches include 2 exemplary community-wide campaigns; mass media campaigns, represented by VERB; and an emerging practice of delivery of short physical activity messages at key community sites. Exemplary representative behavioral/social interventions include social support through organized walking clubs/partners within communities. Exemplary environmental/policy approaches include creating/enhancing access to places for physical activity with informational outreach activities and the emerging strategy of community-wide policies and planning.
Integrating Public Health in Kinesiology: Instruction, Academic Programs, Research, and Outreach
Patty Freedson, David M. Buchner, Russ Pate, Brad Hatfield, Loretta DiPietro, David A. Dzewaltowski, Tim Gavin, and Jeff Nessler
This paper provides an overview of several university programs that have integrated various aspects of public health into their kinesiology instruction, research, and outreach efforts. The summaries of these programs provide the historical context that shows the various stages of transformation of their kinesiology and exercise science programs over the last century. Examples of specific academic structural designs and curricula are described, as well as the rationale the faculty used to justify these programs. In addition, advantages, opportunities, and challenges of this integration are highlighted.
Self-Report vs. Objectively Assessed Physical Activity: Which Is Right for Public Health?
Tom Loney, Martyn Standage, Dylan Thompson, Simon J. Sebire, and Sean Cumming
Background:
To examine the agreement between self-reported and objectively assessed physical activity (PA) according to current public health recommendations.
Methods:
One-hundred and fourteen British University students wore a combined accelerometer and heart rate monitor (Actiheart; AHR) to estimate 24-hour energy expenditure over 7 consecutive days. Data were extracted based on population-based MET-levels recommended to improve and maintain health. On day 8, participants were randomly assigned to complete either the short-form International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) or the Leisure-Time Exercise Questionnaire (LTEQ). Estimates of duration (IPAQ; N = 46) and frequency (LTEQ; N = 41) of PA were compared with those recorded by the AHR.
Results:
Bland-Altman analysis showed the mean bias between the IPAQ and AHR to be small for moderate-intensity and total PA, however the 95% limits of agreement (LOA) were wide. The mean number of moderate bouts of PA estimated by the LTEQ was similar to those derived by the AHR but the 95% LOA between the 2 measures were large.
Conclusions:
Although self-report questionnaires may provide an approximation of PA at a population level, they may not determine whether an individual is participating in the type, intensity, and amount of PA advocated in current public health recommendations.
Understanding the Relationships Between Physical Activity and Climate Change: An Umbrella Review
Milena Franco Silva, Ana Luiza Favarão Leão, Áine O’Connor, Pedro C Hallal, Ding Ding, Erica Hinckson, Tarik Benmarhnia, and Rodrigo Siqueira Reis
systematic reviews and meta-analyses, we can provide a comprehensive understanding of the interplay between physical activity and climate change, thereby informing interventions and policies for researchers, policymakers, and public health officials. Methods There has been significant growth in literature
The Day-Level Association Between Child Care Attendance and 24-Hour Movement Behaviors in Preschool-Aged Children
Hannah Parker, Sarah Burkart, Layton Reesor-Oyer, Lauren von Klinggraeff, Christopher D. Pfledderer, Elizabeth Adams, Robert G. Weaver, Michael W. Beets, and Bridget Armstrong
low rates of meeting guidelines have spurred public health professionals to examine factors that are associated with children’s movement behaviors to inform intervention strategies. However, most of this research has focused on identifying static person-level demographic information related to
The Demise of an Australian Physical Activity Alliance
Rebecca Reynolds, Santhya, and David Menzies
from representative agencies come together to plan, coordinate, and advocate change. 3 Physical activity alliances are important aspects of physical activity public health, 4 but there are not many in existence globally. One ongoing example is the National Coalition for Promoting Physical Activity in
Factors That Influence Meeting the Recommended Weekly Physical Activity Target Among Older People With Physical Multimorbidity: Evidence From 6 Low- and Middle-Income Countries
Lee Smith, Dong Keon Yon, Laurie Butler, Karel Kostev, Carol Brayne, Yvonne Barnett, Benjamin R. Underwood, Jae Il Shin, Masoud Rahmati, Sharon A.S. Neufeld, Anya Ragnhildstveit, Guillermo F. López Sánchez, and Ai Koyanagi
those of the NIHR or the Department of Health and Social Care. References 1. Caspersen CJ , Powell KE , Christenson GM . Physical activity, exercise, and physical fitness: definitions and distinctions for health-related research . Public Health Rep . 1985 ; 100 ( 2 ): 126 – 131 . PubMed ID
