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Engagement in physical education classes and health among young people: does sports practice matter? A cross-sectional study

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INTRODUCTION

Physical activity is an important health-related behavior in different age groups. It is associated with mental, cardiovascular and bone health, lower adiposity, greater physical fitness, greater motor skills development and better quality of life among children and adolescents.1 Approximately 70% of Brazilian adolescents are inactive and therefore promotion of physical activity in this age group is necessary.2 In this context, since schools have a responsibility for promoting physical activity, the subject of physical education takes on an important role in relation to public health among young people,3 with the aims of increasing the amount of moderate to vigorous physical activity and decreasing students’ daily sedentary behavior.4 In addition, physical education classes have the goal of providing students with knowledge, skills and confidence so that they can be active throughout their lifetime, thus preventing the emergence of health problems.3,5

Several observational and experimental studies have been conducted to examine the benefits of physical education classes for schoolchildren’s health. Physical fitness and obesity are widely investigated outcomes because of their contribution to cardiovascular, metabolic, musculoskeletal and mental health among young people.6,7 Experimental studies have demonstrated that intervention programs within physical education classes increase muscle strength8,9 and cardiorespiratory fitness,8,9,10

and decrease the body mass index8 and prevalence of overweight11 among children and adolescents. Similarly, an observational study that evaluated 91,236 fifth-grade students in California, United States, found that policies offering physical education classes were associated with better cardiorespiratory fitness.12