Statistics on Obesity, PA
& Diet: England, Jan 08i
Headline Findings
Compiled by Sally Cornfield on behalf of PAN-WM
PA Headline Statements
(Children 2-15yrs)
• In 2006 70% of boys & 59% of girls achieved the current PA
recommendations (1hr a day)ii. (Figure 1)
• The HSE records activities that children ‘chose’ to do i.e. out-ofschool PA, sports & exercise, active play & walking. Also
housework & gardening is included for children aged 8 & over.
(See Appendix A)
• A further 15% of boys & 19% of girls participated in PA for at least
30 but less than 60 minutes on 7 days in the week. Low levels of
PA (less than 30 mins or not at all) were reported by 15% of boys
and 22% of girls. (Figure 1)
• For girls, high levels of PA declined from age 8 onwards,
while boys levels remained similar across the age
groups. (Figures 2 & 3)
Figure 1
Children’s PA levels by gender, 2006
Office of National Statistics (2008) Statistics on Obesity, Physical
Activity & Diet: England. January, 2008. The Information Centre,
Lifestyle Statistics. Available at:
http://www.ic.nhs.uk/webfiles/publications/opan08/OPAD%20Jan%2
02008%20final.pdf
Figures 2 & 3
Boys PA levels by age, 2006
Girls PA levels by age, 2006
80
80
70
70
60
60
50
50
% 40
High
High
% 40
Medium
Medium
30
Low
30
20
20
10
10
0
Low
0
All
Ages
3
5
7
9
11
13
15
All
Ages
3
5
7
Age
Health Survey for England 2006. The Information Centre, 2008.
Available at: www.ic.nhs.uk/pubs/hse06cvdandriskfactors
9
Age
11
13
15
PA Headline Statements
(Children 2-15yrs)
• Trend data from 2002iii – 2006ii reveal that PA levels have remained
similar. (Figure 4)
• In 2006 99% of boys & girls reported doing some type of PA on at
least one day in the past weekii.
• 95% of boys & 92% of girls reported participation in some activity on
5 or more dates in the last weekii.
• The most common PA for boys (at least once in the previous week)
was active play (93%) followed by walking (90%). 70% participating
in active play on 5 or more days followed by walking (65%)ii. (Figure
5)
• 22% of boys took part in sport & exercise on 5 or more
days but only 4% (8yrs+) participated in housework or
gardeningii. (Figure 5)
Figure 4
Trends in PA levels by gender, 2002 & 2006
70
60
50
Boys 2002
40
Boys 2006
%
Girls 2002
30
Girls 2006
20
10
0
High
Medium
Low
High
Medium
Low
PA Levels
The Health Survey for England 2002. The Department of Health, 2003.
Available at:
http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Publications/Publicati
onsStatistics/DH_4078027
Health Survey for England 2006. The Information Centre, 2008.
Available at: www.ic.nhs.uk/pubs/hse06cvdandriskfactors
Figure 5
Children’s participation on or more days in the
last week in different activities by gender, 2006
Office of National Statistics (2008) Statistics on Obesity, Physical
Activity & Diet: England. January, 2008. The Information Centre,
Lifestyle Statistics. Available at:
http://www.ic.nhs.uk/webfiles/publications/opan08/OPAD%20Jan%2
02008%20final.pdf
PA Headline Statements
(Children 2-15yrs)
• For girls walking was the most common PA with 91% walking (at
least once in the previous week) & 63% walking on at least 5 days
in the last weekii. (Figure 5)
• Only 14% of girls took part in sport & exercise on 5 or more days
but 59% participated in active play on the same number of
occasionsii. (Figure 5)
• 6% of girls (8yrs+) participated in housework or gardening on 5 or
more daysii. (Figure 5)
• Parental PA levels are associated with children’s PA levels.
In households where parental PA participation is high,
children in all age & gender groups report higher PA
levels than children in households where only one parent
had high PA levelsii. (Figure 6 & 7)
Figures 6 & 7
Girls PA levels by parental PA category by age, 2006
Boys PA levels by parental PA category by age, 2006
Mum Low
Mum Low
Mum Medium
Mum Medium
Low 11-15
Low 11-15
Mum High
Medium 11-15
Mum High
Medium 11-15
High 11-15
High 11-15
Dad Low
Low 2-10
Dad Low
Low 2-10
Medium 2-10
Medium 2-10
Dad Medium
High 2-10
Dad Medium
High 2-10
Dad High
Dad High
0
10
20
30
40
%
50
60
70
80
0
10
20
30
40
%
Health Survey for England 2006. The Information Centre, 2008.
Available at: www.ic.nhs.uk/pubs/hse06cvdandriskfactors
50
60
70
80
PA Headline Statements
(Children 2-15yrs)
• Generally a greater proportion of children of fathers with low PA
levels had either medium or low PA levels compared with children
of fathers with high PA levelsii. (Figures 6 & 7)
• Almost half (47%) of girls aged 11-15yrs whose fathers had low
activity levels has had low PA levelsii. (Figure 7)
•
The same association was found between children's and mothers’
activity levels with the difference most pronounced in girls 11-15yrs
(35%)ii. (Figure 7)
• Equivalised household income has little if any effect on the level of
a child’s participation in PA. However patterns for
sport & exercise & equivalised household did emerge.
(Figure 8)
Figure 8
Participation in sport & exercise on at least 1 day in the past week
by equivalised household income & gender, 2006
90
80
70
%
60
Boys 2-10
50
Boys 11-15
40
Girls 2-10
Girls 211-15
30
20
10
0
Highest
2nd
3rd
4th
Lowest
Quintile
Health Survey for England 2006. The Information Centre, 2008.
Available at: www.ic.nhs.uk/pubs/hse06cvdandriskfactors
PA Headline Statements
(Children 2-15yrs)
• Participation in sport & exercise on at least one day in the week
increased with equivalised household income for boys aged 2-10 &
girls in both the 2-10yrs & 11-15yrs group. (Figure 8)
• Among boys aged 11-15yrs there was a similar pattern with lower
participation among those in the lowest two quintiles than in the
upper three. (Figure 8)
• Among boys the proportion doing 60 or more minutes of PA on all 7
days ranged from 76% in the East Midlands to 66% in London & the
East of England. (Figure 9)
• Among girls, 65% in the North East were meeting the hour
a day recommendation, compared to 52% in London.
(Figure 9)
Figure 9
Children's PA levels by GO Region & gender, 2006
Sout h East
Sout h West
London
Girls Low
Girls M edium
37.2%
East England
West Midlands
29.7%
Girls High
Boys Low
Boys M edium
Boys High
9.2%
East Midlands
8.7%
Yorkshire & The Humber
3.5%
Nort h West
Nort h East
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
%
Health Survey for England 2006. The Information Centre, 2008.
Available at: www.ic.nhs.uk/pubs/hse06cvdandriskfactors
70
80
PA Headline Statements
(Children 2-15yrs)
• 74% of boys & 63% of girls from Scotlandiv reported meeting the
PA recommendation compared to 70% of boys and 61% of girls in
Englandiii. (Figure 10)
• The School Sport Survey shows that in 2006/07 86% of pupils in
partnership schools participated in at least two hours of high
quality PE & School Sport in a typical weekv. (Figure 11)
• This compares to 62% in 2003/04, 69% in 2004/05 & 80% in
2005/06v.
• 91% of pupils in primary school, 80% in secondary school & 88%
in special school reported participated in at least two hours of high
quality PE & School Sport in a typical weekv.
• Year 1 has seen the largest increase from 51% in
2004/05 to 87% in 2006/07v.
Figure 10
Proportion meeting the current PA
recommendations, England & Scotland by gender
Office of National Statistics (2008) Statistics on Obesity, Physical
Activity & Diet: England. January, 2008. The Information Centre,
Lifestyle Statistics. Available at:
http://www.ic.nhs.uk/webfiles/publications/opan08/OPAD%20Jan%2
02008%20final.pdf
Figure 11
Pupils who participated in at least 2hrs of high quality PE &
school sport in a typical week, by school type, 2004/05 to 2006/07
Office of National Statistics (2008) Statistics on Obesity, Physical
Activity & Diet: England. January, 2008. The Information Centre,
Lifestyle Statistics. Available at:
http://www.ic.nhs.uk/webfiles/publications/opan08/OPAD%20Jan%2
02008%20final.pdf
PA Headline Statements
(Children 2-15yrs)
• The School Sport Survey shows that pupils spent an average of
almost 2hrs in a typical week (115minutes) on curriculum PEv.
• Year 7 spent the most time (126 minutes) in curriculum PE and
Year 11 spent the least time (94 minutes) v. (Figure 12)
• Pupils in special schools spent the most time taking part in
curriculum PE (133 minutes) compared to primary schools (117
minutes) & secondary schools (112 minutes)v. (Figure 13)
• Curriculum time is important to support high PA levels for children
as overall 70% of all children achieved the target the curriculum
time alone in 2006/07v. (61% in 2005/06v). (Figure 14)
• Year 7 have the highest proportion achieving the target
through curriculum time alone 84%, while years 10 & 11
report the lowest proportion through curriculum time
alone (38% & 35% respectively)v. (Figure 14)
Figure 12
Total curriculum time pupils spent taking part in PE in a typical week,
by year group, 2004/05 to 2006/07
140
120
100
2004/05
Time
in
minutes
80
2005/06
2006/07
60
40
20
0
Year Year Year Year Year Year Year Year Year Year Year
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
Year Group
The 2006/07 School Sport Survey. The Department for Children,
Schools and Families, 2007. Available at: https://dservuk.tnsglobal.com/schoolsports2007/DownloadableDocuments/200607%20School%20Sport%20Survey%20Report.pdf
Figure 13
Total curriculum time by school type, 2004/05 to 2006/07
2006/07
Special
2005/06
Secondary
Primary
2004/05
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
Time in Minutes
The 2006/07 School Sport Survey. The Department for Children,
Schools and Families, 2007. Available at: https://dservuk.tnsglobal.com/schoolsports2007/DownloadableDocuments/200607%20School%20Sport%20Survey%20Report.pdf
Figure 14
How 2hrs PE & school sport is achieved by year group, 2006/07
Office of National Statistics (2008) Statistics on Obesity, Physical
Activity & Diet: England. January, 2008. The Information Centre,
Lifestyle Statistics. Available at:
http://www.ic.nhs.uk/webfiles/publications/opan08/OPAD%20Jan%2
02008%20final.pdf
PA Headline Statements
(Children 2-15yrs)
• In 2006 just over half (52%) of trips to school by children 5-10yrs
were made on foot, similar to the proportion in 1995/97 (53%)vi.
• While the proportion travelling to school by foot is lower among
older children aged 11-16 (41%) the levels among this age groups
has also remained similar since 1995/97 (42%)vi.
• Walking is the most popular mode of transport to school for
children aged 5-16yrs (2006)vi . (Figure 15)
Figure 15
Trips to school for children aged 5-16 by mode of transport, 2006
Office of National Statistics (2008) Statistics on Obesity, Physical
Activity & Diet: England. January, 2008. The Information Centre,
Lifestyle Statistics. Available at:
http://www.ic.nhs.uk/webfiles/publications/opan08/OPAD%20Jan%2
02008%20final.pdf
Appendix A
• Sports and exercise included physical activities such as
swimming, football, tennis, gymnastics and covered more
organised structured sporting activities.
• Active play included activities such as riding a bike, kicking
a ball around, running about, playing active games and
jumping around.
• Information on walking was collected for those children who
had done any continuous walks of at least 5 minutes
duration.
• Housework and gardening was collected for those children
aged 8 and over and included activities that involved
pulling or pushing and lasted at least 15 minutes,
such as vacuuming or cleaning a car.
References
•
i Office
•
ii
•
iii
•
iv
•
v
•
vi
of National Statistics (2008) Statistics on Obesity, Physical Activity & Diet: England.
January, 2008. The Information Centre, Lifestyle Statistics. Available at:
http://www.ic.nhs.uk/webfiles/publications/opan08/OPAD%20Jan%202008%20final.pdf
Health Survey for England 2006. The Information Centre, 2008. Available at:
www.ic.nhs.uk/pubs/hse06cvdandriskfactors
The Health Survey for England 2002. The Department of Health, 2003. Available at:
http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Publications/PublicationsStatistics/DH_4
078027
The Scottish Health Service 2003. Scottish Executive Health Department, 2005
Available at: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2005/11/25145024/50251
The 2006/07 School Sport Survey. The Department for Children, Schools and Families,
2007. Available at:
https://dservuk.tns-global.com/schoolsports2007/DownloadableDocuments/200607%20School%20Sport%20Survey%20Report.pdf
Transport Statistics Bulletin. National Travel Survey: 2006. Department for
Transport, 2007. Available at:
http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/statistics/datatablespublications/personal/
mainresults/nts2006/