“Adults ages 18 to 64 should spend at least 150 to 300 minutes per week in moderate-intensity endurance activity or engage in at least 75 to 150 minutes of sustained-intensity endurance activity or an equivalent combination of moderate and sustained intensity activities throughout the week.” This is what the World Health Organization (WHO) has been recommending for years. Problem: in France, not all citizens meet these recommendations, because they are not active enough and too sedentary.
In order to reach this conclusion, Public Health France carried out a study to determine the knowledge of these councils and their associated factors and analyze the links between achievement and knowledge of the recommendations. To do this, they used data from the France 2021 Public Health Barometer, namely a survey carried out on a random sample of the population residing in France. The analysis focused on 4,571 adults aged 18 to 75 who were questioned about their knowledge of physical activity and its intensity as well as a sedentary lifestyle.
Physical activity: 76.4% of men and 60.8% of women reach WHO recommendations
In 2021, the recommendation on sport is partially known. According to the results, 96.7% of participants cited at least 30 minutes of physical activity per day to be in good health, but only less than a quarter cited the correct recommended intensity. In detail, 22.3% of people say that the exercise should cause shortness of breath, 33.6% that it should be without shortness of breath, 42.3%. “no matter the intensity” and 1.8% say they don’t know. “Overall, 21.6% of adults say that it is necessary to practice at least 30 minutes of physical activity per day with shortness of breath, as recommended. Men are almost twice as likely as women to cite this recommendation. “
On the practical side, 68.4% of French people, more precisely 76.4% of men and 60.8% of women, say they do sport according to the recommendations. In men, after adjustment for age and education, no association was observed between practicing the recommended physical activity and knowledge of the recommendation. On the other hand, among women, knowledge increases the probability of doing sport. The level of diploma above the baccalaureate is also positively associated with recommended physical activity.
23.8% of adults report spending more than seven hours sitting per day during the week
Regarding a sedentary lifestyle, 93.9% of volunteers indicated a frequency of breaking a sedentary lifestyle corresponding to the recommendation to get up at least every two hours to walk a little in the event of prolonged time spent sitting. Three-quarters of adults think it is recommended to break a sedentary lifestyle more often than every two hours. This recommendation is cited more by adults with a level of education above the baccalaureate.
According to Public Health France, 41% of citizens think they sit too long during the day. In detail, 23.8% of adults report spending more than seven hours sitting per day per week, corresponding to a high sedentary lifestyle. “A negative association between a high sedentary lifestyle and age is observed among those under 45, the youngest among them being the most sedentary. Also have a higher probability of having a significant sedentary lifestyle, individuals with a high income level and students”, can we read in the works. Problem: 36.5% of very sedentary people say they cannot reduce the daily time spent sitting.
In the conclusions, the health authority points out that these results show the need to provide more educational explanations on the practice of physical activity, the concept of the intensity of sport and the health benefits.
