Physical inactivity among adolescents

The trend is alarming. According to the World Health Organization's first-ever report on the subject, based on surveys of about 1.6 million students across 146 countries conducted between 2001 and 2016, an increasing number of adolescents do not get enough physical exercise. Four in five adolescents worldwide did not meet the WHO recommendation of at least an hour a day of physical activity such as walking, playing, riding a bike or taking part in organised sports. The situation is worse for girls with 15 percent of them getting the prescribed amount of physical activity compared to 22 percent for boys. This is attributable, especially in conservative societies like Pakistan's, to social pressures on girls to stay home, as well as safety concerns about going outdoors.

The study found that levels of physical activity among adolescents were persistently high across all regions and all countries, ranging from 66 percent in Bangladesh to 94 percent in South Korea. The statistics for these two countries suggest the more young people have access to electronic devices like cell phones and tablets the more they tend to spend time sitting. In fact, in this country, too, it is common for children as young as less than two-years-old to be handed these devices by parents, often to pacify them, which becomes a habit extending into adulthood. Lack of physical activity is also linked to changing lifestyles. Whereas until not too long ago, adolescents used to walk or bike to school, now most of them are dropped and picked by car or other vehicles due to safety concerns; and in the case of Pakistan also because of insufficient and improper public transportation facilities. The prevalence of adolescents' inactivity in this country though may not be as high as in some instances as endemic poverty and fewer educational opportunities force most teenagers to take up jobs that entail physical exertion. Nonetheless, families who can afford both school education and modern gadgets, unwittingly are promoting sedentary habits among their children.

Physical activity not only prevents obesity associated with health problems, it has beneficial effects on heart, respiratory and metabolic functions, as well as cognitive ability. The flip side is a host of risks, including cardiovascular diseases and other conditions like high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, anxiety and depression. These are already serious public health issues in this country, particularly in urban areas, due to a mix of fat-rich diets and sedentary time spent at work and home. And with the advent of the 'electronic revolution', adolescents remain glued to screens for hours on an end. The government needs to see the increasing inactivity in this age group for what it is, a serious challenge to physical and mental well-being of the new generation, and adopt appropriate mitigating strategies.