Table 4.
Proportion with low active play, high screen time, or both behaviors by weight status*
| Weight status | ||
| BMI < 95th percentile (non obese) | BMI ≥95th percentile (obese) | |
| Percentage (95% confidence interval)† | ||
| Low active play § | Boys | |
| 4 to 11 years overall | 30.1% (26.2% – 33.9%) | 38.1% (29.2% – 47.0%)+ |
| 4–5 years | 25.3% (19.3% – 31.2%) | 37.6% (19.9% – 55.3%) |
| 6–8 years | 26.3% (21.2% – 31.5%) | 21.7% (11.4% – 32.0%) |
| 9–11 years | 36.5% (28.6% – 44.5%) | 53.3% (40.1% – 66.4%)** |
| High screen time ‡ | ||
| 4 to 11 years overall | 67.9% (62.6% – 73.3%) | 70.0% (63.4% – 76.6%) |
| 4–5 years | 62.8% (55.2% – 70.3%) | 55.5% (40.2% – 70.6%) |
| 6–8 years | 64.2% (57.3% – 71.0%) | 74.5% (64.1% – 84.9%) |
| 9–11 years | 74.6% (67.7% – 81.6%) | 73.7% (63.6% – 83.8%) |
| Both low active play & high screen time | ||
| 4 to 11 years overall | 23.0% (19.3% – 26.7%) | 28.5% (20.3% – 36.8%) |
| 4–5 years | 17.0% (11.3% – 22.7%) | 30.3% (14.6% – 46.1%) |
| 6–8 years | 19.4% (15.2% – 23.6%) | 16.2% (6.9% – 25.5%) |
| 9–11 years | 29.9% (21.9% – 37.9%) | 38.6% (25.9% – 51.4%) |
| Low active play § | Girls | |
| 4 to 11 years overall | 42.7% (38.0% – 47.4%) | 47.9% (38.9% – 56.9%) |
| 4–5 years | 36.0% (30.1% – 41.9%) | 32.2% (18.3% – 46.1%) |
| 6–8 years | 38.4% (33.1% – 43.6%) | 49.0% (31.2% – 66.8%) |
| 9–11 years | 52.2% (44.7% – 59.7%) | 53.6% (39.8% – 67.4%) |
| High screen time ‡ | ||
| 4 to 11 years overall | 60.7% (56.8% – 64.6%) | 72.0% (64.5% – 79.5%)*** |
| 4–5 years | 55.0% (47.2% – 62.7%) | 62.8% (47.7% – 77.9%) |
| 6–8 years | 60.5% (54.4% – 66.7%) | 77.8% (68.4% – 87.1%)** |
| 9–11 years | 65.2% (59.1% – 71.2%) | 72.0% (63.5% – 80.6%) |
| Both low active play & high screen time | ||
| 4 to 11 years overall | 27.5% (23.7% – 31.3%) | 38.1% (30.3% – 45.9%)** |
| 4–5 years | 19.3% (14.7% – 23.8%) | 21.2% (6.8% – 35.6%) |
| 6–8 years | 25.1% (20.5% – 29.7%) | 40.1% (23.2% – 57.0%) |
| 9–11 years | 36.0% (28.9% – 43.1%) | 43.7% (31.5% – 55.9%) |
Abbreviations: BMI, body mass index (calculated as weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared).
*Proportion of boys and girls with low levels of active play, and/or greater than 2 hours per day of screen time by weight status and age category in the NHANES 2001–2004. Estimates are weighted to be representative of US children age 4 to 11 years.
† Percentage (95% Confidence Interval) calculated accounting for complex survey design
§ low active play defined as reported to play or exercise hard enough to sweat or breathe hard <7 times per week.
‡high screen time defined as >2 hours per day. Screen time includes time spent watching television or videos, and using computers or computer-games.
+ Prevalence in obese children different than in non-obese children of the same age and gender: Wald Chi-square, p < 0.1.
** Prevalence in obese children significantly different than in non-obese children of the same age and gender: Wald Chi-square, p < 0.05.
*** Prevalence in obese children significantly different than in non-obese children of the same age and gender: Wald Chi-square, p < 0.01.