Global study: One in four teens skips daily exercise

One in four adolescents around the world does not engage in 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous exercise on any given day. A new study published in The Lancet Global Health analyzed survey data from over 3 million young people across 140 countries spanning 15 years. The research indicates that only about 14% of teens globally meet the World Health Organization recommendation for a full hour of daily physical activity.

Fiona Bull, head of the physical activity unit at the World Health Organization and a co-author of the study, noted that the trend has remained flat for 15 years. She described the findings as disappointing and called for a reevaluation of current strategies. Bull stated, "Business as usual will not change these trends."

The data reveals a persistent gender gap. Girls are less active than boys in nearly every country surveyed. Nearly 30% of girls reported zero days of exercise during the week, compared to 22% of boys. Only 11% of girls exercised daily, a figure that rises to 17% for boys. The weekly average for active days was 2.4 for girls and 3 for boys. Solveig Cunningham, a global health researcher at Emory University, warned that if a teen starts with a baseline of zero activity, that pattern often continues into adulthood.

Adolescents in low- and middle-income countries reported lower levels of activity than their peers in wealthier Western nations. Andrea Ramirez Varela, an epidemiologist at the University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston, explained that physical activity is often a matter of opportunity. In many developing regions, the built environment restricts where young people can play or move. Varela pointed out that many cities are not designed for walking. In Latin America, where she conducts much of her research, she said, "many parents think it's unsafe to just let your kids walk alone to and from places."

Air pollution in urban centers also discourages outdoor activity. Varela noted that after school, many adolescents return home and sit in front of screens. She observed, "Because this digital world is so attractive, they are going to be sedentary the rest of the day."

Cultural norms further influence the gender divide. Cunningham highlighted research from India, where mothers and grandmothers sometimes discourage girls from spending time outside after puberty. Cunningham explained, "We don't want girls spending a lot of time outside. Their skin might get darker. That might have negative implications for whether they can get married."

The study suggests that schools are a practical setting for intervention. Countries with higher adolescent exercise levels tend to have more structured time for sport during or after the school day. Varela argued that policymakers must focus on the settings where kids spend most of their time. She stated, "Not solving the problem in this stage of life will perpetuate the problem in adulthood."