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Obesity, energy intake and physical activity in rural and urban New Zealand children Research Completed

Title

Obesity, energy intake and physical activity in rural and urban New Zealand children

Lead Author

E. Hodgkin , Michael J. Hamlin, Jenny J. Ross, F. Peters

Organisation(s)

Ministry of Health, Lincoln University,

Publication Year

2010

Publisher

Rural and Remote Health 10: 1336

Contacts

Michael Hamlin mike.hamlin@lincoln.ac.nz

Abstract

The objective of this study was to investigate rural–urban differences in body composition, energy intake, physical activity and screen time in New Zealand children. This study reports on data collected in a large national cross-sectional population survey of 5-15 year-olds (the 2002 National Children’s Nutrition Survey, CNS02). The results of the study showed that rural children had a significantly lower BMI, smaller waist circumferences and thinner skinfold measurements than urban children. Furthermore, urban boys were 1.3 times more likely to be overweight or obese than rural boys and urban girls were 1.4 times more likely to be overweight or obese than rural girls. There was no significant difference in the energy intake per day of rural and urban children. Similarly, there was no significant difference in the frequency of bouts of physical activity undertaken by rural and urban children. This finding is different from other Western countries and may be due to differences in the physical and social environment in New Zealand. More research is required to understand these potential environmental rural–urban differences.

Keywords:Body Composition,energy intake, physical activity, Rural, Urban, Exercise, Children, Adolescents

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