Journal of Public Health

, Volume 22, Issue 2, pp 187–196 | Cite as

Social and health related risk factors for low cardio respiratory fitness in German adolescents: results of the German Health Interview and Examination Survey for Children and Adolescents (KiGGS)

Original Article
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Abstract

Aim

A high cardio respiratory fitness level (CRF) has been shown to be associated with cardiovascular disease risk factors. It is the objective of these analyses to compare risk factors for low CRF between girls and boys and to investigate whether the impact of social inequality on CRF can fully be explained by the known risk factors for low CRF.

Subjects and methods

German Health Interview and Examination Survey for Children and Adolescents (KiGGS) was a cross-sectional population representative study; the present analyses include 5,908 participants (11–17 years) in whom CRF was measured by a submaximal cycle ergometer test. The odds ratios (OR) from sex stratified, age-adjusted logistic regression models analysing the chance of low CRF were calculated and a multivariate logistic regression model was built.

Results

Multivariate models showed that low CRF was associated with high body fat (girls: OR 3.53; 95 % Confidence Interval (CI) 2.71-4.59; boys OR 6.69; 95 % CI 3.86–11.6), physical inactivity (girls: OR 3.09; 95 % CI 2.12–5.52; boys OR 4.25; 95 % CI 2.53–7.15) and extensive media use. Beyond these factors, adjusted analyses showed that low socio-economic status in boys and two-sided migration background in girls were associated with low CRF.

Conclusion

CRF in German youths shows social inequality and cultural and sex differences which cannot fully be explained by the known risk factors for low CRF. Cardiovascular prevention should consider social inequality and should involve measures against overweight, lack of physical activity and abundance of sedentary activities.

Keywords

Adolescents Cardio respiratory fitness Cycle ergometer test Risk factors Cross-sectional study 

Abbreviations

BMI

Body mass index

CI

Confidence intervals

CRF

Cardio respiratory fitness level

CVD

Cardiovascular disease

KiGGS

German Health Interview and Examination Survey for Children and Adolescents

OR

Odds ratios

PA

Physical activity

PWC

Physical working capacity

SES

Socioeconomic status

VO2max

Maximal oxygen uptake

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Notes

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank Klaus Bös and his colleagues from the Institute of Sports and Sport Science of the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) for time and efforts they spent in supporting the implementation of the cycle ergometer tests to the KiGGS study protocol.

Competing interests

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Authors’ contributions

CP analysed the data and performed the statistical analysis. CP and SK provided specific knowledge, carried out the literature research and drafted the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Copyright information

© Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2014

Authors and Affiliations

  1. 1.Unit 23 “Health of Children and Adolescents, Prevention Concepts”, Department of Epidemiology and Health MonitoringRobert Koch InstituteBerlinGermany

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