Comparisons in Screen-Time Behaviours among Adolescents with and without Long-Term Illnesses or Disabilities: Results from 2013/14 HBSC Study
1
Health Research Institute, University of Limerick, Limerick V94 T9PX, Ireland
2
Centre of Physical Activity and Health Research, University of Limerick, Limerick V94 T9PX, Ireland
3
Department of Physical Education and Sport Sciences, University of Limerick, Limerick V94 T9PX, Ireland
4
CHILD, School of Education and Communication, Jönköping University, 55 111 Jönköping, Sweden
5
School of Medicine, University of St. Andrews, St. Andrews KY16 9TF, UK
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2018, 15(10), 2276; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph15102276
Received: 13 September 2018 / Revised: 27 September 2018 / Accepted: 27 September 2018 / Published: 17 October 2018
(This article belongs to the Collection Sedentary Behaviour and Health)
Reducing sedentary behaviours can help prevent non-communicable diseases, particularly among young adolescents with long term illnesses or disabilities (LTID). Much of young people’s voluntary sedentary time is related to screen-time behaviours (STBs) such as TV viewing, playing computer games, and using the computer for other activities. Although public health data on adolescents’ STB is growing, information about adolescents with LTID is currently lacking in a European context. The purpose of this study is to compare time on STBs between adolescents with and without LTID in European Countries through the HBSC 2013/14 study. Young adolescents (n = 61,329; boys 47.8%) from 15 European countries reported the time spent on TV viewing, playing computer games, and using the computer for other purposes on weekdays and the weekend. STBs were dichotomised based on international recommendations of less than 2 h per day, and Chi-square tests of independence were performed to investigate differences. STB time was combined to produce a sum score as dependent variable in multiple analysis of covariance with age and family affluence as covariates. There were statistically significant differences in computer gaming among boys and other computer use among girls for both weekdays and weekends, whereby adolescents with LTID reported higher use. In addition, both boys and girls with LTID spent more time on STBs than their same sex peers without LTID (Boys, F = 28.17, p < 0.001; Girls, F = 9.60, p = 0.002). The results of this study indicate a need for preventive strategies to address high levels of STB among young adolescents with LTID and reduce the risk of poor health outcomes associated with higher levels of sedentary behaviour.
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Keywords:
sedentary behaviours; screen time; children; HBSC; disability
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MDPI and ACS Style
Ng, K.W.; Augustine, L.; Inchley, J. Comparisons in Screen-Time Behaviours among Adolescents with and without Long-Term Illnesses or Disabilities: Results from 2013/14 HBSC Study. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2018, 15, 2276.
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