Background. Adolescent girls are less likely to meet physical activity recommendations than boys. This study examined the relative contribution of structured physical activity opportunities including physical education (PE) class and sports teams to overall activity levels for girls and boys. Methods. Data from 591 9th–12th grade students who completed the 2009 Philadelphia Youth Risk Behavior Survey were examined. Logistic regression was used to estimate the relationship between PE and sports teams and physical activity levels. Models were stratified by gender to estimate gender differences. Results. Girls were less likely to be active than boys: 27.9% of girls were sedentary as compared to 10.6% of boys. PE class was not related to activity levels among boys, while highly active girls were seven times more likely to participate in daily PE than were sedentary girls. Playing on one or more sports teams was associated with low-moderate and high activity in girls; among boys, sports team participation was only associated with high activity. Conclusions. The structured physical activity opportunities of PE and sports teams may contribute more to overall activity levels in girls than boys. A more rigorous assessment of this hypothesis is warranted to inform efforts to promote activity levels in girls. 1. Introduction Gender differences in physical activity levels among youth are well documented [1–5]. Less than half the proportion of girls as compared to boys achieve the recommended 60 minutes or more of activity per day in the previous week (11% versus 25%, resp.) [5]. The likelihood of developing chronic diseases such as obesity, type 2 diabetes, and high blood pressure significantly increased in sedentary as compared to active youth [6], and given the gender disparity in physical activity levels, this can translate to a relatively increased risk among girls. Given that sedentary behaviors among youth continue into adulthood [7, 8], these negative health effects have the potential to become life-long afflictions, particularly among women. Understanding the factors that contribute to this gender disparity in physical activity, particularly among youth, could inform programming efforts. Previous studies have examined the correlates and determinants of physical activity in adolescents [1, 9] and reported that, in addition to being male, other variables associated with increased levels of activity include being white, of younger age, having lower levels of depression, eating healthy foods, watching less television, and engaging in lower levels of tobacco and
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