The cardiorespiratory physical fitness of young people under the age of 17 has deteriorated over the past three decades, results are considered worrying and require significant changes.
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This was demonstrated by a recent study conducted among 3,725 young people from six schools in Quebec from 2014 to 2017 by an associate professor from the University of Sherbrooke.
Their physical abilities were analyzed during shuttle tests. This exercise, also commonly called the beep-beep test and popularized in the 80s by Luc Léger, consists of doing a series of round trips over a distance of 20 meters while gradually increasing the speed.
A similar study was conducted in 1982. By comparing these results with those collected recently, the experts found that young people complete 30% fewer levels during this activity.
VO2 max, which consists of maximum oxygen consumption, was also studied. In 17-year-old boys, this parameter fell by 18%, and by regarding 12% in girls of the same age.
“It’s the fact that since the 80s, young people have greatly increased sedentary activities, video games. In short, the activities where we are always seated, ”explained the principal researcher of the study, Mario Leone, associate professor at the University of Sherbrooke.
The latter added that this factor can have an impact on the health of young people.
“Individuals who have low VO2, therefore low levels, are much more exposed to developing metabolic diseases, such as obesity, type 2 diabetes. […] When you look behind, there is a tsunami coming. Now it’s young people, very young people, who are going to have problems [de personnes plus âgées].»
Getting young people moving goes through the school environment, but also through the family environment, according to some parents interviewed by TVA Nouvelles.
“If the parents move with their children, if they do sports themselves, they have good role models,” says a young mother.
“It’s hard to get our kids moving with screens these days. No matter how much we want to cut, we have more misery. We are also left with a more hurried life, […] but we have to get them out,” added another mother of two elementary school children.
Among the solutions put forward in this study, it would be necessary in particular to increase the number of hours of physical education, believes the researcher.
It would also be important to interview young people to fully understand what motivates them. To make a success of this big move, Mario Leone is of the opinion that the involvement and the will of the political milieu are necessary.
