Objective: The aim of this study was to examine associations of types of social participation and objectively assessed sedentary behavior (SB) and physical activity (PA) patterns in community-dwelling older adults.

Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in 2015. The study sample was 1,314 Japanese older adults who were originally randomly selected from three cities (Bunkyo, Fuchu and Oyama) and took part in a community-based survey carried out in 2010. In 2015, participants who agreed to accelerometer survey were asked to wear the accelerometer (Active style Pro HJA-350IT) on their waist for seven consecutive days. SB, light-intensity PA (LPA), and moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA) were evaluated. Social participation was examined using question items from the National Health and Nutrition Survey in Japan and was classified into two types; community involvement and individual relationship. Sex-stratified multiple linear regression analysis was used to examine the associations between each type of social participation and patterns of SB and PA after adjustment for age, residential area, living arrangement, working status, driving status, body mass index, self-rated health, physical functioning, and accelerometer wear time.

Results: Data from 450 participants was analyzed. In multiple regression analysis, higher level of community involvement was associated with longer time spent in short-bout (<10 min) MVPA in older men (β=1.56, p=0.03) and women (β=2.91, p<0.01). In women, community involvement was also related to reduced total SB time (β= －11.43, p<0.01) and increased LPA time (β=8.13, p=0.03).

Conclusion: Promoting community involvement may increase short-bout MVPA and LPA time in older adults.

Objective: This study examined the association between the perception of hilly environment and active transportation among older adults living in sloping land.

Methods: This study was cross-sectional. A questionnaire survey was conducted with older adults (n = 1021) residing in Tsurukabuto area in Nada-ward, Kobe-city. Among the respondents, 693 individuals (67.9%) answered the survey. In this study, data from 337 individuals aged 65 or more without serious mobility limitations and missing data were analyzed. Active transportation was measured as “transportation outside Tsurukabuto area by walking or cycling at least once a week.” To evaluate participants’ perception of the hilly environment, they were asked whether transportation was difficult due to the hilly neighborhood. Gender, age group, living arrangement, perceived economic status, driving status, exercise activity at least twice a week, being overweight, knee pain, and psychological distress were also examined in the questionnaire. A poisson regression analysis was performed, with active transportation as the dependent variable, and the perception of the hilly environment and other factors as the independent variables.

Results: Among the respondents, 21.2% engaged in active transportation. The poisson regression analysis revealed that those who negatively perceived the hilly environment (adjusted prevalence ratio = 0.64, 95% confidence interval = 0.42-0.96) were less likely to engage in active transportation than those who did not negatively perceived it.

Conclusion: The present study found that the those without negative perception of the hilly environment tended to engage in active transportation among the respondents. This finding indicates that reducing negative perception of the hilly environment might influence active transportation among older adults living in sloping land.

Objective: Understanding which physical activity questionnaires are commonly used globally could help in studies of international comparisons in the future. This study aimed to summarize the global trends in the evaluation methodology of physical activity questionnaires for children and adolescents.

Methods: Literatures from 38 countries that participated in “The Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Youth (Report Card)” were identified. Evidence to grade the overall physical activity levels in each country was collected to summarize the evaluation methodology of physical activity questionnaires for children and adolescents.

Results: The Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) questionnaire was used most frequently among the 38 countries (12 countries, 31.6%). The Global School-based student Health Survey (GSHS) questionnaire was the second popular questionnaire used in 6 countries (15.8%). In both HBSC and GSHS questionnaires, participants were asked to respond with “the number of days in which they achieved 60 minutes/day of moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA)”. On the other hand, several questionnaires contained “frequency” and “volume/time” of MVPA (IPAQ, GPAQ, PAQ-C/A, SHAPES, CLASS, AQuAA); however, only a few countries used those questionnaires.

Conclusion: The present study showed that evaluating the frequency of achieving 60 minutes/day of MVPA (e.g., HBSC and GSHS) was the most frequently used question to evaluate the overall physical activity in children and adolescents among 38 countries.

Objective: The aim of the present study is to compare indicators of physical activity by gender in primary school and junior high school students in 47 prefectures based on international indicators.

Methods: The determinants of physical activity based on international indicators of “Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Youth” were evaluated by representative data from 47 prefectures in primary school and junior high school students. The percentage of students meeting the criteria for each indicator was calculated and each indicator, divided by gender, was assigned a grade.

Results: “Active Transportation,” and “Weight Status,” received from A⁺ to B grades in all 47 prefectures. The grade for “Organized Sport Participation” was from B to C, while “Physical Fitness” grades ranged from B to D. The grade for “Sedentary Behavior” was from C to D⁺. In the influences domain, “Family and Peer Influence” were graded as D^- or F. “Overall Physical Activity” and “Active Play” could not be graded. In terms of gender differences, girls’ grades for “Organized Sport Participation” and “Family and Peer Influence” were lower than those of boys in every prefecture. In some prefectures, girls also had lower grades for “Active Transportation” than those of boys. In keeping with this trend, boy’s grades in “Sedentary Behavior” were also lower than those of girls in every prefecture.

Conclusion: The differences in all indicators except for “Physical Fitness” among prefectures were small. However, grades for some indicators were low, which has to be improved. One notable finding was that girls lagged behind boys in indicators for “Sports Participation” and “Family and Peer Influence”, and also for “Active Transportation” in some prefectures. Boys’ “Sedentary Behavior” was lower than that of girls in every prefecture; this suggests there is a need for strategy appropriate to each prefecture, considering the gender differences.