Physical fitness before and during the COVID-19 pandemic: Results of annual national physical fitness surveillance among 16,647,699 Japanese children and adolescents between 2013 and 2021

Tetsuhiro Kidokoro; Grant R Tomkinson; Justin J Lang; Koya Suzuki

doi:10.1016/j.jshs.2022.11.002

Physical fitness before and during the COVID-19 pandemic: Results of annual national physical fitness surveillance among 16,647,699 Japanese children and adolescents between 2013 and 2021

J Sport Health Sci. 2023 Mar;12(2):246-254. doi: 10.1016/j.jshs.2022.11.002. Epub 2022 Nov 5.

Authors

Tetsuhiro Kidokoro¹, Grant R Tomkinson², Justin J Lang³, Koya Suzuki⁴

Affiliations

¹ Research Institute for Health and Sport Science, Nippon Sport Science University, Tokyo 158-8508, Japan; Graduate School of Health and Sports Science, Juntendo University, Inzai City 270-1695, Japan. Electronic address: kidokoro@nittai.ac.jp.
² Alliance for Research in Exercise, Nutrition and Activity (ARENA), University of South Australia, Adelaide, SA 5000, Australia.
³ Centre for Surveillance and Applied Research, Public Health Agency of Canada, Ottawa, ON K1A 0K9, Canada; School of Epidemiology and Public Health, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1H 8M5, Canada; Healthy Active Living and Obesity Research Group, Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario Research Institute, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L1, Canada.
⁴ Graduate School of Health and Sports Science, Juntendo University, Inzai City 270-1695, Japan. Electronic address: ko-suzuki@juntendo.ac.jp.

Abstract

Background: Limited nationally representative evidence is available on temporal trends in physical fitness (PF) for children and adolescents during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. The primary aim was to examine the temporal trends in PF for Japanese children and adolescents before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. The secondary aim was to estimate the concurrent trends in body size (measured as body mass and height) and movement behaviors (exercise, screen, and sleep time).

Methods: Census PF data for children in Grade 5 (aged 10-11 years) and adolescents in Grade 8 (aged 13-14 years) were obtained for the years 2013-2021 from the National Survey of Physical Fitness, Athletic Performance, and Exercise Habits in Japan (n = 16,647,699). PF and body size were objectively measured, and movement behaviors were self-reported. Using sample-weighted linear regression, temporal trends in mean PF were calculated before the pandemic (2013-2019) and during the pandemic (2019-2021) with adjustments for age, sex, body size, and exercise time.

Results: When adjusted for age, sex, body size, and exercise time, there were significant declines in PF during the pandemic, with the largest declines observed in 20-m shuttle run (standardized (Cohen's) effect size (ES) = -0.109 per annum (p.a.)) and sit-ups performance (ES = -0.133 p.a.). The magnitude of the declines in 20-m shuttle run and sit-ups performances were 18- and 15-fold larger, respectively, than the improvements seen before the pandemic (2013-2019), after adjusting for age, sex, body size, and exercise time. During the pandemic, both body mass and screen time significantly increased, and exercise time decreased.

Conclusion: Declines in 20-m shuttle run and sit-ups performances suggest corresponding declines in population health during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Keywords: Census; Physical inactivity; Public health; Temporal trends; Youth.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Adolescent
COVID-19* / epidemiology
Child
East Asian People
Exercise
Humans
Pandemics*
Physical Fitness