cross-European cross-sectional survey.
Primary schoolchildren (n = 1025) aged 10-12 years in Belgium, Greece, Hungary, the Netherlands, and Switzerland wore accelerometers for at least six consecutive days. Only weekdays were used for this study to calculate the percentages of school-time spent in sedentary activities and moderate to vigorous intensity activity. Trained research assistants measured height and weight. Sex and date of birth were self-reported by the child and parental education and ethnicity were parent-reported.
European schoolchildren spent on average 65% of their time at school in sedentary activities and 5% on moderate to vigorous intensity activities, with small differences between countries. Girls spent a significant larger amount of school-time in sedentary activities (67%) than boys (63%; p < 0.0001), and spent less time in moderate to vigorous intensity activities (4% versus 5%; p < 0.001). Overweight children spent significantly less time in moderate to vigorous intensity activities (4%) that normal weight children (45%, p < 0.01). Parental education or ethnicity were not associated with time spent in sedentary or physical activities.
European schoolchildren spend a small amount of their school-time in moderate to vigorous intensity activities and a large amount in sedentary activities, with small but significant differences across countries. Future interventions should target more physical activities and less sedentary time at school particularly in girls.