Diet, Physical Activity, and Obesity in School-Aged Indigenous Youths in Northern Australia
Purpose. To examine the relationship between diet, physical activity, and obesity in Indigenous youths from northern Australia. Methods. In a cross-sectional study, physical activity and dietary intake (“short nutrition questionnaire”) were assessed among all youths during a face-to-face interview....
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Series: | Journal of Obesity |
Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2012/893508 |
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doaj-5ecf2651accd46f39bfb21216a782daf2020-11-24T23:07:37ZengHindawi LimitedJournal of Obesity2090-07082090-07162012-01-01201210.1155/2012/893508893508Diet, Physical Activity, and Obesity in School-Aged Indigenous Youths in Northern AustraliaPatricia C. Valery0Torukiri Ibiebele1Mark Harris2Adèle C. Green3Andrew Cotterill4Aletia Moloney5Ashim K. Sinha6Gail Garvey7Menzies School of Health Research, Charles Darwin University, P.O. Box 10639 Brisbane Adelaide Street, QLD 4000, AustraliaQueensland Institute of Medical Research, Herston, QLD 4006, AustraliaMater Children’s Hospital, South Brisbane, QLD 4010, AustraliaQueensland Institute of Medical Research, Herston, QLD 4006, AustraliaMater Children’s Hospital, South Brisbane, QLD 4010, AustraliaUniversity of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD 4067, AustraliaCairns Base Hospital, Cairns, QLD 4870, AustraliaMenzies School of Health Research, Charles Darwin University, P.O. Box 10639 Brisbane Adelaide Street, QLD 4000, AustraliaPurpose. To examine the relationship between diet, physical activity, and obesity in Indigenous youths from northern Australia. Methods. In a cross-sectional study, physical activity and dietary intake (“short nutrition questionnaire”) were assessed among all youths during a face-to-face interview. For 92 high school youths, additional dietary information was assessed using a food-frequency questionnaire. Height and weight were measured and BMI was calculated. Multiple logistic regression was used to assess associations. Results. Of the 277 youths included, 52% had ≤2 servings of fruit and 84% had <4 servings of vegetables per day; 65% ate fish and 27%, take-away food (“fast food”) at least twice a week. One in four ate local traditional sea food including turtle and dugong (a local sea mammal) at least twice a week. Overweight/obese youths engaged in fewer days of physical activity in the previous week than normal weight youths (OR=2.52, 95% CI 1.43–4.40), though patterns of physical activity differed by sex and age (P<0.001). Overweight/obese youths were 1.89 times (95% CI 1.07–3.35) more likely to eat dugong regularly than nonobese youths. Analysis of food-frequency data showed no difference by weight assessment among high-school students. Conclusions. Low fruit and vegetable intake were identified in these Indigenous youths. Regular consumption of fried dugong and low frequency of physical activity were associated with overweight/obesity reinforcing the need to devise culturally appropriate health promotion strategies and interventions for Indigenous youths aimed at improving their diet and increasing their physical activity.http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2012/893508 |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Patricia C. Valery Torukiri Ibiebele Mark Harris Adèle C. Green Andrew Cotterill Aletia Moloney Ashim K. Sinha Gail Garvey |
spellingShingle |
Patricia C. Valery Torukiri Ibiebele Mark Harris Adèle C. Green Andrew Cotterill Aletia Moloney Ashim K. Sinha Gail Garvey Diet, Physical Activity, and Obesity in School-Aged Indigenous Youths in Northern Australia Journal of Obesity |
author_facet |
Patricia C. Valery Torukiri Ibiebele Mark Harris Adèle C. Green Andrew Cotterill Aletia Moloney Ashim K. Sinha Gail Garvey |
author_sort |
Patricia C. Valery |
title |
Diet, Physical Activity, and Obesity in School-Aged Indigenous Youths in Northern Australia |
title_short |
Diet, Physical Activity, and Obesity in School-Aged Indigenous Youths in Northern Australia |
title_full |
Diet, Physical Activity, and Obesity in School-Aged Indigenous Youths in Northern Australia |
title_fullStr |
Diet, Physical Activity, and Obesity in School-Aged Indigenous Youths in Northern Australia |
title_full_unstemmed |
Diet, Physical Activity, and Obesity in School-Aged Indigenous Youths in Northern Australia |
title_sort |
diet, physical activity, and obesity in school-aged indigenous youths in northern australia |
publisher |
Hindawi Limited |
series |
Journal of Obesity |
issn |
2090-0708 2090-0716 |
publishDate |
2012-01-01 |
description |
Purpose. To examine the relationship between diet, physical activity, and obesity in Indigenous youths from northern Australia. Methods. In a cross-sectional study, physical activity and dietary intake (“short nutrition questionnaire”) were assessed among all youths during a face-to-face interview. For 92 high school youths, additional dietary information was assessed using a food-frequency questionnaire. Height and weight were measured and BMI was calculated. Multiple logistic regression was used to assess associations. Results. Of the 277 youths included, 52% had ≤2 servings of fruit and 84% had <4 servings of vegetables per day; 65% ate fish and 27%, take-away food (“fast food”) at least twice a week. One in four ate local traditional sea food including turtle and dugong (a local sea mammal) at least twice a week. Overweight/obese youths engaged in fewer days of physical activity in the previous week than normal weight youths (OR=2.52, 95% CI 1.43–4.40), though patterns of physical activity differed by sex and age (P<0.001). Overweight/obese youths were 1.89 times (95% CI 1.07–3.35) more likely to eat dugong regularly than nonobese youths. Analysis of food-frequency data showed no difference by weight assessment among high-school students. Conclusions. Low fruit and vegetable intake were identified in these Indigenous youths. Regular consumption of fried dugong and low frequency of physical activity were associated with overweight/obesity reinforcing the need to devise culturally appropriate health promotion strategies and interventions for Indigenous youths aimed at improving their diet and increasing their physical activity. |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2012/893508 |
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