Study: Families, Schools Provide Less Encouragement For Girls To Be Physically Active

A team of Australian researchers discovered that there could be a gender-based disparity in physical activity among young girls and boys. They found that girls are less physically fit than boys due to school and family influences.

The study, which was conducted by the researchers from University of Canberra and published in the journal PLOS One, concluded that young girls are 19 percent less physically active compared to boys of the same age. They also found that young girls start to become less physically fit than boys at the age of eight, with higher percentage of body fats, 18 percent lower cardio-respiratory fitness, 44 percent lower eye-hand coordination, and nine percent lower perceived competence in physical education.

The researchers have studied the physical activity levels of 276 boys and 279 girls, aged eight to 12, from 29 primary schools in Australia. They gauged a variety of factors including individual fitness and coordination. They also measured family and environmental factors by asking the respondents about their individual perception of competence in physical education, their family's support for physical activity, and their participation in school and extracurricular sports.

The researchers attributed the lower physical activity among girls to weak school and family influences. They said that home and school environments may provide stronger encouragement for boys to be physically active than girls.

"Our findings suggest that school is a stronger influence on boys' activity levels compared to girls," Rohan Telford, co-author of the study, said in an article of ABC Online. "On average, girls take almost 2,000 fewer steps a day than boys, and eight-year-old girls had 18 percent lower cardio-respiratory fitness than boys of the same age."

According to Telford, the gap could be closed by providing more physical activity opportunities to girls. He also added that both genders should be given equal levels of encouragement and engagement by their schools and families.