Original Research
Physical fitness in rural and urban children and adolescents from Spain

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsams.2011.04.004Get rights and content

Abstract

Objective: We aimed to examine the differences in fitness components between rural and urban Spanish children and adolescents. Design/method: A sample of 2569 school children (1068) and adolescents (1501) from urban and rural areas from the region of Aragón (Spain). Physical fitness was assessed by 7 tests: 20 m shuttle run, speed shuttle run, sit and reach, standing long jump, handgrip strength, bent arm hang and sit-ups in 30 s (s). Differences (in fitness and anthropometry) by place of residence were examined by one-way analysis of covariance. Results: Rural young people had higher cardiorespiratory fitness, but lower speed-agility and flexibility than urban young people (all p < 0.001; mean differences = 1.5 mL/kg per min, 0.4 s and 0.9 cm respectively). Regarding muscular fitness, rural young people had a better performance in handgrip strength (mean difference = 0.8 kg), bent arm hang (mean difference = 2.3 s), and a lower performance in sit-ups in 30 s (mean difference = 0.9 s) (all p < 0.001), compared to their urban peers. Rural young people had a lower body mass, body mass index (BMI) and sum of skinfolds (all p < 0.05; mean differences = 1.1 kg, 0.3 kg/m2 and 4.9 mm respectively) than their urban peers. Effect size was small-medium (Cohen's d = 0.1–0.3). Conclusion: Rural Spanish children and adolescents had overall a healthier profile than their urban peers in terms of cardiorespiratory fitness, upper- and lower-limb muscular fitness and adiposity, while they performed worse in speed-agility and flexibility. The place of residence should be taken into account when implementing effective interventions to promote physical activity and health.

Introduction

Physical fitness level in childhood and adolescence is positively associated with present and future health-related outcomes such as risk for obesity, cardiovascular disease, skeletal health and mental health.1, 2 Physical fitness components such as cardiorespiratory fitness,3, 4, 5 muscular fitness2, 6 and speed-agility,1 are strongly related to health in young people and must be considered when assessing one's health status.

Physical fitness is in part genetically determined, but it can also be greatly influenced by environmental factors. Appropriate physical activity is one of the main determinants of fitness.7, 8, 9 Living in areas distinguished by population size can be associated with differences in eating habits, access to sport facilities and opportunities for physical activity, among others. This environmental exposure might determine lifestyle behaviour and cardiovascular risk,10, 11 and it might be associated with fitness levels.

Several studies have examined the association between place of residence (urban or rural) and physical fitness in young people all around the world, e.g. USA,12 Turkey,13 Switzerland,14 Cyprus,15 Greece,16 Mexico,17 Australia18 and Oman,19 and observed inconsistent results. The differences between places of residence are country- and region-specific, and data from different countries are required to better understand the relationship between place of residence and fitness in youth. In addition, the activity habits associated with school physical education and lifestyle can differ between children and adolescents, and it is interesting to further explore whether the relationship between place of residence and fitness differ between children and adolescents.

We aimed to examine the differences in a set of physical fitness components between rural and urban Spanish children and adolescents. Moreover, differences in anthropometric and sport participation among rural and urban participants were also examined.

Section snippets

Method

A sample of 2569 healthy Caucasian school children (1068) and adolescents (1501) were randomly selected from the region of Aragón using a multistage, proportional-cluster sampling according to the structure of the local school system, the geographic distribution of the three provinces that composed Aragón, and the gender.20, 21 The children group was 7–12 years old and the adolescent group was 13–16 years old. Participation rate was higher than 90%.

Both parents and students were informed about

Results

Characteristics of the study sample by gender and age group are shown in Table 1.

In Table 2, we present data for anthropometric and physical fitness variables by place of residence. Descriptive data, mean differences, effect size and 95% CI are presented. We found significant differences in all of the study variables except for standing long jump. The ANCOVA analyses showed that rural young people had a lower body mass (p = 0.004; mean difference = 1.1 kg; Cohen's d = 0.1), BMI (p = 0.029; mean

Discussion

The results suggest differences in anthropometric and physical fitness indicators between rural and urban young people. Rural children and adolescents had a healthier anthropometric, cardiorespiratory fitness and muscular fitness (except for sit-ups) profile than their urban peers. On the other hand, rural participants showed a lower speed-agility and flexibility than their urban peers. However, all the indicators showed small mean differences and small to medium size effects among rural and

Conclusion

Overall, rural Spanish children and adolescents seem to have a healthier profile than their urban peers in terms of cardiorespiratory fitness, upper- and lower-limb muscular fitness and adiposity, while they performed worse in speed-agility and flexibility. Since mean differences and effect size were small for all the health indicators, the current findings support the notion that the environment might have a light influence on many health-related factors, including fitness. The place of

Practical implications

  • The place of residence (rural and urban) seems to be related with several health outcomes.

  • Rural young people from Spain had a healthier anthropometric, cardiovascular and muscular fitness, and lower speed agility and flexibility than their urban peers; mean differences among rural and urban were small.

  • The place of residence must be taken in account when implementing effective interventions to promote physical activity and health.

Acknowledgements

We thank the students that took part in the study and their parents for their grateful collaboration. We thank Aracelie Castro for the meticulous English review. This study was supported by grants from the Spanish Ministry of Education (JC 2009-00238; EX-2008-0641) and the Swedish Heart-Lung Foundation (20090635).

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