Physical Activity Differences By Birthplace And Sex In Youth Of Mexican Heritage

PURPOSE: One of the goals of Healthy People 2010 (USDHHS, 2000) is to reduce health disparities among different racial and ethnic segments of the U.S. population. Few studies have been conducted to examine physical activity (PA) differences by birthplace and sex in youth of Mexican heritage. The purpose of this study was to determine whether PA differs by birthplace and by sex in youth of Mexican heritage. METHODS: Participants were 101 youth (43 boys, 58 girls, M ± SD age of 14.8 ± 1.4 yrs). Approximately 59% were US-born and 41% were Mexico-born. Physical activity was assessed using a piezo-electric pedometer with a moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) timer. Participants wore the pedometers for 7-days and recorded daily time worn on a PA log. Independent t-tests were used to determine whether the average number of steps taken per day (steps/d) and the average accumulation of MVPA time in minutes per day (min/d) differed by birthplace and sex. We intended to use chi-square tests to determine whether the percentage of youth who met the recommended values of 15,000 steps/d for boys and 12,000 steps/d for girls (Tudor-Locke et al., 2004) and the percentage of youth who met the recommended 60 min/d of MVPA (Strong et al., 2005) differed by birthplace and sex. However, insufficient numbers of youth met the PA recommendations. RESULTS: Mexico-born youth took more steps, on average, than their US-born counterparts (8527.2 ± 3059.1 vs. 7273.5 ± 2859.4 steps/d, p = 0.038). However, MVPA time did not differ between Mexico- and U.S.- born youth (22.9 ± 13.6 vs. 19.1 ± 12.3 min/d, p = 0.146). By contrast to birthplace, sex-related differences were more consistent, as boys took more steps (8815.4 vs. 7016.7 ± 2170.2 steps/d, p = 0.005) and accumulated more MVPA time (23.9 ± 16.0 vs. 18.2 ± 9.5 min/d, p = 0.043) than girls. Only 2 Mexico-born boys, 1 Mexico-born girl, 1 U.S.-born boy, and no U.S.-born girls met either one or both of the recommended amounts of PA. CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that PA may differ by birthplace and by sex in youth of Mexican heritage, as U.S.-born girls were the least active segment of our sample. Culturally sensitive interventions to increase daily PA through school PE and community programs must become a higher public health priority for all youth of Mexican heritage and, in particular, for U.S.-born girls of Mexican heritage.