Abstract
The world’s first evidence-based sedentary behaviour guidelines were released in Canada in 2011. Based on evidence that time spent in sedentary pursuits poses important health risks, the guidelines recommend limits on the time that children and youth are sedentary throughout the day. Although the guidelines reflect differences in age, they do not include recommendations for adults, nor engage with other important determinants of health such as sex and gender, despite research suggesting that girls and boys, women and men, engage in different sedentary behaviours. For example, it has been suggested that girls spend considerable time in communication-based sedentary behaviours such as talking on the phone, texting and instant messaging, while boys are more likely to watch television and videos, or play computer games. There is also evidence suggesting that the health outcomes associated with sedentary behaviour differ for females and males, and there are gendered social and economic barriers that may influence sedentary behaviour. It is therefore time to consider sex and gender in research and policy on sedentary behaviour in order to effectively reduce time spent sedentary and to improve the health of women and men in Canada.
Key words: Sedentary behaviour, sex, gender, health promotion, policy
Résumé
Les premières lignes directrices au monde sur le comportement sédentaire qui sont fondées sur des données probantes ont été publiées au Canada en 2011. Comme ces données montrent que le temps consacré à des activités sédentaires pose des risques importants pour la santé, les lignes directrices recommandent de limiter le temps où les enfants et les jeunes sont sédentaires pendant la journée. Bien que ces lignes directrices tiennent compte des différences d’âge, elles n’incluent pas de recommandations pour les adultes et n’abordent pas d’autres déterminants importants de la santé, comme le sexe et le genre, malgré les études qui tendent à montrer que les filles et les garçons, les femmes et les hommes, ont des comportements sédentaires différents. Les données montrent par exemple que les filles consacrent beaucoup de temps à des comportements de communication sédentaires, comme parler au téléphone, texter et envoyer des messages instantanés, tandis que les garçons ont plus tendance à regarder la télévision ou des vidéos ou à jouer à des jeux sur ordinateur. Les données montrent aussi que les résultats de santé associés aux comportements sédentaires diffèrent selon le sexe, et qu’il existe des obstacles sociaux et économiques sexospécifiques qui peuvent influencer la sédentarité. Il est donc temps d’examiner le sexe et le genre dans la recherche et les politiques sur les comportements sédentaires afin de véritablement réduire le temps consacré à des activités sédentaires et d’améliorer la santé des femmes et des hommes au Canada.
Mots clés: comportement sédentaire, sexe, genre, promotion de la santé, politique
Footnotes
Conflict of Interest: None to declare.
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