Actividad física y salud

819

SYMPOSIUM / SYMPOSIUM

Physical activity in youth from a subsistence agriculture community in the Valley of Oaxaca, southern Mexico
˜ Robert M. Malina, Maria Eugenia Pena Reyes, Swee Kheng Tan, and Bertis B. Little

Abstract: Observations of activities of contemporary subsistence agricultural communities may provide insights into the lifestyle of youth of 2 to 3 generations ago. Thepurpose of this study was to document age- and sex-associated variation in household activities and daily steps walking to school of youth 9–17 years in an indigenous subsistence agricultural community in Oaxaca, southern Mexico. Activities during leisure were also considered. A cross-sectional survey of a rural Zapotec-speaking community was undertaken, and respondents included 118 boys and 152girls, aged 8.7–17.9 years. Household and leisure activities were documented by questionnaire and subsequent interview. Household activities were classified by estimated intensity for before and after school and on the weekend, and an estimate of METS per day accumulated while doing chores was derived. Number of steps from home to school was estimated. Contingency table analysis and MANCOVAcontrolling for age was used to evaluate results. Household activities tended to cluster at light and moderate intensities in girls and at moderate to moderate-to-vigorous intensities in boys. Estimated METS per day in ~2 h of chores differed significantly by sex. Secondary school girls expended significantly more METS per day in chores than primary school girls, but there was no difference by schoollevel in boys. The daily round trip from home to school was ~2400 steps for primary students and ~2700 and ~3100 steps for secondary boys and girls, respectively. Television viewing and participation in sports were major leisure activities for boys and girls. Daily household chores, walking, and leisure activities suggest moderately active and moderately-to-vigorously active lifestyles in girls andboys, respectively, in this indigenous subsistence agricultural community. Key words: Mesoamerica, walking, household chores, growth, television viewing. ´ ´ ` ´ ´ Resume : L’observation des activites des communautes agricoles contemporaines travaillant a des fins de subsistance peut ´ ´ ´ nous donner une image du mode de vie des jeunes d’il y a deux ou trois generations. Le but de cette etude estde recueillir ´ ˆ ´ ´ des donnees relatives aux taches domestiques accomplies et au nombre de pas comptes pour aller et revenir de l’ecole ˆ ´ ` ` ´ ´ chez des jeunes des deux sexes ages de 9 a 17 ans et vivant a Oaxaca, une communaute localisee au sud du Mexique. On ´ ´ ´ ˆ ´ prend egalement note des activites de loisir. Il s’agit d’une etude transversale comprenant 152 filles et 118 garcons ages¸ ` ´ ´ ˆ de 8,7 a 17,9 ans d’une communaute rurale parlant le zapotec. On se renseigne sur les activites de loisir et les taches do´ ´ ´ ´ mestiques au moyen d’un questionnaire et d’une entrevue subsequente. On estime l’intensite des activites domestiques rea´ ` ´ ´ lisees avant et apres les heures de classe et durant les fins de semaine, puis on evalue en METS par jour la depense ´ ´ ˆ ´ ´ ˆd’energie consacree aux taches domestiques. On estime le nombre de pas separant l’ecole du domicile. On controle le facˆ ´ ´ ´ teur age par l’analyse des tableaux de contingence et par l’analyse multivariee de la covariance. L’intensite des activites ` ´ ` ´ ´ ´ ¸ domestiques chez les filles se situe globalement a deux niveaux, legere et moderee; chez les garcons, cette intensite se si` ´ ´ ´ ´ ` ´ ´ ´´ ` tue a deux autres niveaux, moderee et de moderee a intense. La depense energetique quotidienne estimee en METS a la ´ ˆ ´ ` realisation des taches domestiques d’une duree d’environ 2 h par jour varie significativement d’un sexe a l’autre. Les filles ´ ´ ` ´ ˆ du niveau secondaire depensent plus d’energie a realiser les taches domestiques que les filles du niveau primaire, mais les ´ ´ ´`...