TY - JOUR
T1 - Fitness level and body composition indices
T2 - cross-sectional study among Malaysian adolescent
AU - Hanifah, Redzal Abu
AU - Majid, Hazreen Abdul
AU - Jalaludin, Muhammad Yazid
AU - Al-Sadat, Nabilla
AU - Murray, Liam J.
AU - Cantwell, Marie
AU - Su, Tin Tin
AU - Nahar, Azmi Mohamed
N1 - Funding Information:
This study was supported by grants from University of Malaya Research Grant (RG299-11HTM) and Vice Chancellor Research Grant (UMQUB3D-2011). The post-doctoral research fellow position for this project was jointly funded by University of Malaya and Queen's University of Belfast. The funders had no role in study design, collection, analysis and interpretation of data, writing of manuscript, or decision to submit for publication. We would like to thank all the enumerators who helped us throughout data collection. We are also grateful for the support and guidance provided by the Centre of Population Health, University of Malaya and the Centre of Public Health, Queen's University Belfast.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2014 Hanifah et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.
PY - 2014/11/24
Y1 - 2014/11/24
N2 - Background: The importance of fitness level on the well-being of children and adolescent has long been recognised. The aim of this study was to investigate the fitness level of school-going Malaysian adolescent, and its association with body composition indices. Methods: 1071 healthy secondary school students participated in the fitness assessment for the Malaysian Health and Adolescents Longitudinal Research Team (MyHEART) study. Body composition indices such as body mass index for age, waist circumference and waist height ratio were measured. Fitness level was assessed with Modified Harvard Step Test. Physical Fitness Score was calculated using total time of step test exercise and resting heart rates. Fitness levels were divided into 3 categories - unacceptable, marginally acceptable, and acceptable. Partial correlation analysis was used to determine the association between fitness score and body composition, by controlling age, gender, locality, ethnicity, smoking status and sexual maturation. Multiple regression analysis was conducted to determine which body composition was the strongest predictor for fitness. Results: 43.3% of the participants were categorised into the unacceptable fitness group, 47.1% were considered marginally acceptable, and 9.6% were acceptable. There was a significant moderate inverse association (p < 0.001) between body composition with fitness score (r = -0.360, -0.413 and -0.403 for body mass index for age, waist circumference and waist height ratio, respectively). Waist circumference was the strongest and significant predictor for fitness (ß = -0.318, p = 0.002). Conclusion: Only 9.6% of the students were fit. There was also an inverse association between body composition and fitness score among apparently healthy adolescents, with waist circumference indicated as the strongest predictor. The low fitness level among the Malaysian adolescent should necessitate the value of healthy lifestyle starting at a young age.
AB - Background: The importance of fitness level on the well-being of children and adolescent has long been recognised. The aim of this study was to investigate the fitness level of school-going Malaysian adolescent, and its association with body composition indices. Methods: 1071 healthy secondary school students participated in the fitness assessment for the Malaysian Health and Adolescents Longitudinal Research Team (MyHEART) study. Body composition indices such as body mass index for age, waist circumference and waist height ratio were measured. Fitness level was assessed with Modified Harvard Step Test. Physical Fitness Score was calculated using total time of step test exercise and resting heart rates. Fitness levels were divided into 3 categories - unacceptable, marginally acceptable, and acceptable. Partial correlation analysis was used to determine the association between fitness score and body composition, by controlling age, gender, locality, ethnicity, smoking status and sexual maturation. Multiple regression analysis was conducted to determine which body composition was the strongest predictor for fitness. Results: 43.3% of the participants were categorised into the unacceptable fitness group, 47.1% were considered marginally acceptable, and 9.6% were acceptable. There was a significant moderate inverse association (p < 0.001) between body composition with fitness score (r = -0.360, -0.413 and -0.403 for body mass index for age, waist circumference and waist height ratio, respectively). Waist circumference was the strongest and significant predictor for fitness (ß = -0.318, p = 0.002). Conclusion: Only 9.6% of the students were fit. There was also an inverse association between body composition and fitness score among apparently healthy adolescents, with waist circumference indicated as the strongest predictor. The low fitness level among the Malaysian adolescent should necessitate the value of healthy lifestyle starting at a young age.
KW - adiposity parameters
KW - adolescent
KW - Malaysia
KW - Metabolic risk factors
KW - physical fitness
KW - step test
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84964313352&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1186/1471-2458-14-S3-S5
DO - 10.1186/1471-2458-14-S3-S5
M3 - Article
C2 - 25436933
AN - SCOPUS:84964313352
SN - 1471-2458
VL - 14
JO - BMC Public Health
JF - BMC Public Health
M1 - S5
ER -
