Monitoring physical activity in Baltic countries: the FINBALT study, HBSC and other surveys in young people

Aim: The promotion of health through increased physical activity (PA) has become a national public health objective for both adults and children. To achieve this aim a good and comparable monitoring system of PA and its determinants is needed. The aim of the current review paper is to describe how PA is monitored and what the trends are in PA among adults and children in Baltic countries and Finland as well as the association between PA, body mass index (BMI) and socio-economic determinants. Subjects and methods: Data from two relevant surveys at the moment were used to make comparisons in PA trends between Baltic countries and Finland: FINBALT Health Monitor for adults aged 16–64 years and Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) for 11-, 13- and 15-year-old schoolchildren. Results and conclusions: The percentage of adults involved in PA twice a week in Baltic countries is remarkably lower than in Finland. Among schoolchildren no clear country difference is obvious in the participation in leisure time PA between Baltic countries and Finland. After graduating school, involvement in organised PA decreases in young people remarkably. Both overweight and obese adults and children tend to be less physically active than normal weight persons. Adults and young people from more affluent families are more physically active than those in less affluent families. In order to better explain the changes in PA trends and the effectiveness of preventive work, more and better indicators that determine the involvement in PA and the effectiveness of interventions have to be added to the survey questionnaires.