TELEVISION VIEWING PHYSICAL ACTIVITY AND FITNESS IN YOUTH 239

The relationship between time spent viewing television and physical activity and health-related fitness was evaluated in youth 9-18 years of age from the Quebec Family Study. The sample was divided into three age groups by gender: 9-12 (131 M, 95 F), 13-15 (124 M, 102 F), and 16+ (101 M, 87 F) years. Television viewing (TV time, min/day) was estimated over a typical week. Physical activity was quantified as estimated daily energy expenditure (EE) and energy expenditure in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) derived from the protocol of Bouchard et al. (Am J Clin Nutr 37: 461-467, 1983) for two week days and one weekend day. Fitness variables were PWC150(kpm/kg·min-1), knee extension strength (kg/kg), sit-ups(n/min), and sum of six skinfolds (mm). Correlations between TV time and EE and MVPA were low and not significant with no clear pattern by age group and gender (-0.03 to -0.15). Those between TV time and fitness were also low and generally not significant with no clear pattern by age and gender (PWC150,-0.29 to -0.05; sit-ups, -0.25 to +0.10; strength, -0.08 to +0.16; skinfolds,-.03 to +0.17). At the extremes, youth in the highest and lowest quartiles of TV time showed no consistent significant differences (ANCOVA, age as the covariate) in EE, MVPA and the four fitness items within each age group and gender. Similarly, youth in the highest and lowest quartiles of EE, MVPA and each fitness item did not consistently differ in TV time within each age group and gender. The results indicate that time watching television may have only a weak association with physical activity and fitness in youth.