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Review
. 2023 May 26:11:1172168.
doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2023.1172168. eCollection 2023.

The 2022 ParticipACTION Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Youth: Focus on the COVID-19 pandemic impact and equity-deserving groups

Nicholas Kuzik  1   2 , Christine Cameron  3 , Valerie Carson  4 , Jean-Philippe Chaput  1   2 , Rachel Colley  5 , Joe Doiron  6 , Guy Faulkner  7 , Ian Janssen  8 , Travis Saunders  9 , John C Spence  4 , Patricia Tucker  10 , Leigh M Vanderloo  10   11 , Mark S Tremblay  1   2
Affiliations
Review

The 2022 ParticipACTION Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Youth: Focus on the COVID-19 pandemic impact and equity-deserving groups

Nicholas Kuzik et al. Front Public Health. .

Abstract

Introduction: The ParticipACTION Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Youth is the most comprehensive national assessment of physical activity and related behaviors, characteristics, and opportunities for children and youth. The 2022 Report Card assigned grades based on data gathered during the COVID-19 pandemic to reflect this extraordinary time-period in Canada. Further, while not graded, efforts were made to summarize key findings for early years children and those identifying as: having a disability, Indigenous, 2SLGBTQ+, newcomers to Canada, racialized, or girls. The purpose of this paper is to summarize the 2022 ParticipACTION Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Youth.

Methods: The best available physical activity data captured during the whole COVID-19 pandemic was synthesized across 14 different indicators in four categories. The 2022 Report Card Research Committee assigned letter grades (i.e., A-F) based on expert consensus of the evidence.

Synthesis: Grades were assigned for: Daily Behaviors (Overall Physical Activity: D; Active Play: D-; Active Transportation: C-; Organized Sport: C+; Physical Education: Incomplete [INC]; Sedentary Behaviors: F; Sleep: B; 24-Hour Movement Behaviors: F), Individual Characteristics (Physical Literacy: INC; Physical Fitness: INC), Spaces and Places (Household: C, School: B-, Community and Environment: B), and Strategies and Investments (Government: B-). Compared to the 2020 Report Card, the COVID-19 specific grades increased for Active Play and Active Transportation; and decreased for Overall Physical Activity, Sedentary Behaviors, Organized Sport, and Community and Environment. There were many data gaps for equity-deserving groups.

Conclusion: During the COVID-19 pandemic, the grade for Overall Physical Activity decreased from a D+ (2020) to a D, coinciding with decreases in grades reflecting fewer opportunities for sport and community/facility-based activities as well as higher levels of sedentary behaviors. Fortunately, improvements in Active Transportation and Active Play during COVID-19 prevented a worse shift in children's health behaviors. Efforts are needed to improve physical activity for children and youth during and post-pandemic, with a greater emphasis on equity-deserving groups.

Keywords: advocacy; child health; health communication; knowledge translation; policy.

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Conflict of interest statement

JD was employed by ParticipACTION. The remaining authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Grades for daily behaviors in 2020 and 2022.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Percent of indicators with no results, for each equity-deserving group.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Grade comparisons beyond daily behaviors in 2020 and 2022.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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