Physical
Activity and Children and Adolescents
Knowledge Path
Knowledge Path Table of Contents
- Web Sites
- Additional Electronic Publications
- Databases: Data, Literature and Research, and Programs
- Electronic Newsletters and Online Discussion Groups
Resources on Specific Aspects of Physical Activity
- Child Care and Early Childhood Education
- Community Design
- School-Based Physical Activity
- Special Health Care Needs
Please provide feedback on this knowledge path.
This knowledge
path about physical activity and children and adolescents
has been compiled by the Maternal
and Child Health Library at Georgetown University.
It offers a selection of current, high-quality resources
that analyze data, describe public health campaigns
and other promotion programs, and report on research
aimed at identifying promising strategies for improving
physical activity levels within families, schools
and after-school programs, child care and early childhood
education settings, and communities. The knowledge
path also provides resources about physical activity
for children and adolescents with special health
care needs. The knowledge path is aimed at health
professionals, policymakers, educators, child care
providers, community organizers, and families, and
it will be updated periodically.
Related knowledge paths:
Nutrition
in Children and Adolescents
Overweight
and Obesity in Children and Adolescents
See Physical Activity and the Health of Young People, rev. ed. (2008) by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This fact sheet highlights the benefits of regular physical activity and the long-term consequences of sedentary behavior for children and adolescents. It also presents participation rates in physical activity and in physical education classes for children and adolescents.
- American
Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation
and Dance (AAHPERD). Includes publications,
program information, electronic
discussion groups, and links to a research
consortium and each of the alliance organizations
that represent professionals in physical education,
health education, recreation, dance, and sports.
The organizations are the American
Association for Health Education (AAHE),
the American
Association for Physical Activity and Recreation
(AAPAR), the National
Association for Girls and Women in Sport (NAGWS),
the National
Association for Sport and Physical Education
(NASPE), and the National
Dance Association (NDA).
- American
College of Sports Medicine (ACSM): Youth Sports
and Health Resource Center. Presents
information about this effort to promote child
and adolescent health and fitness and combat
overweight and obesity through research, education,
and initiatives to increase safe and effective
participation in sports and physical activity
and reduce the risk and incidence of injury.
Recent publications include
Selected Issues for the Adolescent Athlete and the Team Physician: A Consensus Statement. (2008).
- Association
of State and Territorial Public Health Nutrition
Directors (ASTPHND): Moving to the Future.
Offers a collection of tools to develop successful
community programs that promote healthy eating
and physical activity. Includes instructions
for conducting a community assessment, writing
objectives, developing a plan, and evaluating
programs. ASTHPHND also presents
Critical Need for Public Health Leadership and Capacity to Improve Health through Physical Activity: Recommendations from the Physical Activity Collaborative. (2008).
- Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Supports several initiatives and offers many
resources to improve
physical activity among children, adolescents,
and adults that include
Guide to Community Preventive Services: Physical Activity. Contains recommendations for population-based interventions to increase physical activity that are appropriate for communities and health care systems. Recommendations are focused on interventions in three areas: (1) campaigns and informational approaches to increasing physical activity, (2) behavioral and social approaches to increasing physical activity, and (3) environmental and policy approaches to increasing physical activity.
Physical Activity Resources for Health Professionals. Offers information and tools for state and local health departments, schools and universities, community coalitions, organizations that fund public health programs, health care systems, and other groups that have an interest in or responsibility for increasing physical activity. Provides reports and recommendations, data and surveillance resources, information to assist with program planning and evaluation, and ideas for physical activity promotion.
Social Marketing for Nutrition and Physical Activity. This online course provides training for public health professionals about how to use social marketing to plan nutrition, physical activity, and obesity-prevention programs.
Tobacco-Free Sports Initiatives. Offers materials to help coaches, school administrators, and state and local health departments promote the importance of choosing an active and tobacco-free lifestyle.
Also see these additional CDC resources: Youth Physical Activity Guidelines Toolkit (2009), Healthy Youth!, BAM! Body and Mind, Best Bones Forever!, Physical Activity for Everyone, Designing and Building Healthy Places, Data and Surveillance: An Explanation of U.S. Physical Activity Surveys, Data2010: The Healthy People 2010 Database, and the Nutrition, Physical Activity and Obesity State Legislative Database.
- Girls
on the Run (GOTR). Offers information
about this nationwide program to promote physical
activity and healthy behaviors among girls
age 8 to 13.
- Healthy
People 2010. Offers information about
this national health-promotion and disease-prevention
initiative that is coordinated by the Office
of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion
(ODPHP). The initiative addresses 467 objectives
in 28 focus areas. Focus area 22 addresses physical
activity and fitness, and it includes objectives
for children and adolescents. See Data2010 for
data about the objectives. See the HP2010
Information Access Project for access to
published literature related to the objectives.
Also view proposed Healthy
People 2020 objectives for physical
activity and fitness.
- National
Coalition for Promoting Physical Activity (NCPPA).
Presents information about the National
Physical Activity Plan and its implementation
along with links to fact sheets, tools, reports,
and state physical activity coalitions. NCPPA
is a coalition of public, private, and industry
organizations that advocate for policies to
encourage all Americans to lead more physically
active lives. See NCPPA’s e-newsletters.
- National
Physical Activity Plan. Presents
a set of strategies and tactics that aim to
increase physical activity in all segments
of the U.S. population. The National
Coalition for Promoting Physical Activity (NCPPA) is
coordinating the implementation of the plan
among organizations throughout the country.
- National
Society of Physical Activity Practitioners
in Public Health (NSPAPPH). Presents
articles, conference and program information,
and links to physical activity resources that
have been developed by state and national organizations.
- National
Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA).
Offers position statements, journal article
abstracts, and other resources about strength
training and conditioning practices to improve
athletic performance and fitness. Topics include
anabolic steroid abuse.
- Physical
Activity Guidelines for Americans.
Presents science-based guidance to help Americans
ages 6 and older improve their health through
participation in appropriate physical activity.
Recommendations are provided for groups such
as children and adolescents, adults, older
adults, pregnant and postpartum women, and
individuals with special health care needs.
Other resources include a blog and fact
sheet for health professionals and a toolkit with posters and
other materials for organizations and communities.
The guidelines are presented by the Department
of Health and Human Services (DHHS). Materials
include
2008 Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans. (2008). A chapter addresses physical activity in children and adolescents. CDC's Youth Physical Activity Guidelines Toolkit (2009) highlights strategies that schools, families, and communities can use to support these guidelines.
Physical Activity Guidelines Advisory Committee Report. (2008). This report documents the scientific background and rationale for the guidelines.
- President’s
Council on Physical Fitness and Sports (PCPFS).
Contains resources for coaches, teachers, health
and fitness professionals, and families about
physical fitness. Resources include a physical
activity and fitness program toolkit, guides,
fact sheets, research briefs, and the President’s
Challenge, an online physical activity
tracking and award program.
- Up2Us:
Bring Change Through Youth Sports.
Presents program information, fact sheets,
and policy briefs about using physical activity
and sports as a tool for youth development.
Up2Us is a national coalition of sports-based
youth-development organizations.
- Women’s
Sports Foundation. Offers program
and grant information and reports, policy statements,
and guides about sports and physical activity
for girls and women. Resources and initiatives
include
GoGirlGo! Presents program information, curricula, guides, and Spanish-language materials about this effort to improve the health and wellness of girls ages 8-18 through physical activity.
Go Out and Play: Youth Sports in America. (2008). [Report].
Additional Electronic Publications
- Miller W, Simon P, Maleque S. 2009. Beyond
Health Care: New Directions to a Healthier America—Recommendations
from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Commission
to Build a Healthier America. Princeton,
NJ: Robert Wood
Johnson Foundation. This report examines
the sources of health shortfalls in the United
States; describes successful community initiatives
and state and federal program innovations to
support healthier choices and health-promoting
policies and environments; and recommends strategies
for improving America’s health. Topics
include healthy eating, physical activity, healthy
environments and behaviors, starting healthy
habits early, and healthy homes and communities.
A chapter is devoted to increasing children's
opportunities for daily physical activity.
- National
Institute for Health Care Management Foundation.
2008. Prevention
of Adult Cardiovascular Disease Among Adolescents:
Focusing on Risk Factor Reduction. Washington,
DC: National Institute for Health Care Management
Foundation. This monograph examines the prevalence
and risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD)
and then explores promising strategies that health
professionals and health plans can use to reduce
adolescent risk factors for future CVD, such
as encouraging adolescents to participate in
physical activity.
- Office
of the Surgeon General. 2010. The
Surgeon General’s Vision for a Healthy
and Fit Nation. Rockville, MD: Department
of Health and Human Services (DHHS). This
report describes the epidemic of overweight and
obesity among children, adolescents, and adults
in the United States and presents recommendations
to address the problem through better nutrition
and regular physical activity in communities,
homes, child care settings, schools, work sites,
and medical communities. A fact
sheet accompanies the report.
- Suitor CW, Kraak VI. 2007. Adequacy
of Evidence for Physical Activity Guidelines
Development: Workshop Summary. Washington,
DC: National Academies
Press. This report summarizes a workshop
of research scientists and physical activity
practitioners who gathered to consider the evidence
base for the Department of Health and Human Services
to develop a comprehensive set of physical
activity guidelines for Americans. Special
consideration was given to the physical activity
needs of children and adolescents, pregnant and
postpartum women, older adults, and persons with
disabilities.
- Tucker
Center for Research on Girls and Women in Sport.
2007. Developing
Physically Active Girls: An Evidence-based Multidisciplinary
Approach. Minneapolis, MN: Tucker Center
for Research on Girls and Women in Sport. This
report examines the physiological, psychological,
and sociological dimensions and impact of physical
activity in the lives of girls and young women
and makes recommendations for best practices,
programs, and approaches.
- White House Task Force on Childhood
Obesity. 2010. Solving
the Problem of Childhood Obesity Within a Generation:
Report to the President. Washington, DC: Executive
Office of the President of the United States. This
report describes the problem of child and adolescent
obesity, recommends steps to address the problem,
and outlines benchmarks of success. Recommendations
focus on the early childhood period, empowering
parents and caregivers, providing healthy food
in schools, improving access to healthy, affordable
foods, and increasing physical activity.
The databases listed below are excellent tools for identifying data, additional literature and research, and programs addressing physical activity. Many of the entries below contain tips on how to use the databases efficiently. Please note that databases vary in how terms should be entered; for example, some require quotation marks and others don't. Enter search phrases as shown in bold below.
- Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): An
Explanation of U.S. Physical Activity Surveys.
Describes and compares several different national
surveys that track physical activity in many
age groups and at several levels for the United
States national public health objectives. Also
provides background information about physical
activity assessment. The following surveys
are examined: Behavioral
Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS), National
Health Interview Survey (NHIS), National
Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), Youth
Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS), National
Household Travel Survey (NHTS), and School
Health Policies and Programs Study (SHPPS).
- Child
Trends DataBank. Reports on national
trends and research on over 100 key indicators
of infant, child, and adolescent well-being.
Child Trends is a nonprofit, nonpartisan research
organization providing research and data to
inform decision-making that affects families.
Recent analyses about physical activity and
children and adolescents include
Physical Inactivity in U.S. Adolescents: Family, Neighborhood, and Individual Factors. (2009).
- Data2010:
The Healthy People 2010 Database. Contains
the most recent monitoring data for tracking Healthy
People 2010. To obtain physical activity
data, click on the field, Data by Focus Area.
Under the field, Select a Focus Area, choose
22-Physical Activity and Fitness from the pop-up
menu. Click on the Submit button or use the
other fields to narrow your search. This data
set is provided by the National
Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) via CDC
Wonder.
- KIDS
COUNT Data Center. Contains information
about this national and state-by-state effort
to track the status of children in the United
States. See the data profile, Children
and Teens Not Exercising Regularly, which
ranks by state the share of children and adolescents
ages 6 to 17 who engaged in less than 5 days
of vigorous physical activity in the past week.
KIDS COUNT is a project of the Annie
E. Casey Foundation (AECF).
- Title
V Information System (Title V IS).
Contains data from annual Title V Block Grant
applications and reports submitted by all 59
U.S. states and jurisdictions. To learn about
states' efforts to address child and adolescent
physical activity, conduct two searches. Select Measurement
and Indicator Data and go to the State
Data section. First, select State Priority
Needs Keyword Search and choose Keyword: Nutrition/Physical
Activity and Population: Children (1 through
21). Click on Start Search to get your results.
Next, return to Measurement
and Indicator Data and select State Performance
Measures. Click on Search by Keyword/Population.
Select Keyword: Nutrition/Physical Activity
and Population: Children (1 through 21). Click
on Start Search to get your results. Title
V IS is a service of the Maternal
and Child Health Bureau (MCHB).
- AGRICOLA
(AGRICultural OnLine Access). Contains
bibliographic information for agricultural
literature, including many child and adolescent
nutrition publications from the Department
of Agriculture’s Food and Nutrition Service;
state child nutrition agencies; Nutrition Education
and Training Program products; Team Nutrition
grantees; cooperative extension program materials;
and materials from associations, universities,
and the private sector. AGRICOLA is organized
into two data sets (books and journal articles).
To identify books and/or articles on the topic,
click on Keyword Search. Enter the terms, children
adolescents and select "any of these" and "Subject"
in the two fields to the right. Click "And". In the
next row, enter fitness exercise and select "any
of these" and "Subject" in the two fields to the
right. Click on "Set Limits" to narrow your search
(e.g., add a publication date limit). Use the thesaurus to
identify terms for related searches. AGRICOLA is
a service of the National
Agricultural Library (NAL).
- ClinicalTrials.gov.
Provides access to information about clinical research
studies for a wide range of diseases, conditions,
and health behaviors. Included are a summary of
the purpose of the study, information about recruiting
status, criteria for patient participation, location
of the trial, and contact information. To identify
studies, click on Search for Clinical Trials, enter
the search phrase ("physical activity" OR exercise)
AND (children OR adolescents), and click on
Search. Click on the Refine Search tab to narrow
your search results. ClinicalTrials.gov is a service
of the National Institutes
of Health (NIH).
- Database
of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects (DARE).
Contains summaries of systematic reviews that
have met strict quality criteria. Included
reviews must be about the effects of interventions.
Each summary also provides a critical commentary
on the quality of the review. To identify reviews,
enter the phrase, ("physical activity" OR
exercise) AND (children OR adolescents) in
the search box. Click on search to get your
results. DARE is produced and maintained by
the Centre for Reviews and Dissemination at
the University of York.
- HP2010
Information Access Project: Physical Fitness.
Provides an automatic search mechanism for
published literature indexed in PubMed related
to the Healthy People 2010 physical
activity and fitness objectives. Also links
to the narrative for each objective and the
complete chapter about physical activity and
fitness in the text, Healthy
People 2010: Understanding and Improving Health
(2nd ed) (2000). This service is provided
by the Partners
in Information Access for the Public Health
Workforce, a collaboration of federal agencies,
public health organizations, and health sciences
libraries.
- Maternal
and Child Health Library at the National
Center for Education in Maternal and Child
Health (NCEMCH), Georgetown University.
Maintains several databases to collect, manage,
and disseminate knowledge about maternal and
child health (MCH), with special emphasis on
knowledge gained from initiatives and programs
supported by the Maternal
and Child Health Bureau (MCHB). The library’s
bibliographic database is
MCHLine®. Comprises an online catalog of materials in the Maternal and Child Health Library. To identify items about physical activity, conduct three searches in the keyword field of the database search form using the terms "physical activity", "physical education", and "physical fitness". To narrow your searches, enter a single publication year or range of years, and/or add keywords (e.g., obesity, school). There will be overlap in the records identified in these searches.
Also see the MCH Organizations Database.
- National
Guideline Clearinghouse (NGC). Contains
evidence-based clinical practice guidelines
and related materials for health professionals.
Identify guidelines by selecting Detailed Search
in the Search box. Enter "physical activity" in
the Keyword field. Scroll down on the search
form to select Age of Target Population and
Publication Date. The database is an initiative
of the Agency
for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ).
- National
Institutes of Health (NIH) Research Portfolio
Online Reporting Tool (RePORT): RePORTER.
Provides access to reports, data, and analyses
of NIH research activities, including information
on NIH expenditures and the results of NIH-supported
research. To identify information on the topic,
conduct two searches. First, enter "physical
activity" children in the search field
and click on Submit query to get your results.
Conduct a second search by entering "physical
activity" adolescents in the search
field and clicking on Submit query to get your
results. There will be overlap in the records
identified in these searches. Narrow your searches
by selecting a state or adding terms to other
search fields.
- PubMed.
Contains more than 19 million citations for biomedical
articles from MEDLINE and life science journals.
Citations may include links to full-text articles
from PubMed Central or publisher web sites. To
identify citations on the topic, enter the term exercise in
the search box. Click on Limits and make the following
selections on the page: select a date (e.g. Published
in the last 2 years); click on Languages: English;
Click on Species: Humans; Click on Ages: All Child:
0-18 years; and select Search Field Tags: MeSH
Major Topic. Add search terms to further limit
the search (e.g., exercise AND environment design).
Use the MeSH
(Medical Subject Headings) database to identify
additional search terms (e.g., physical
education). PubMed is a service of the National
Library of Medicine (NLM). Also see the HP2010
Information Access Project for access to published
literature related to the Healthy
People 2010 objectives about physical activity
and children and adolescents.
- Also see the Active
Living Research Literature Database, the Educational
Resources Information Center (ERIC) Database,
and the NSBA School Health Resource
Database.
- Community
Pediatrics Grants Database. Comprises
an archive of community pediatrics grant projects.
Identify projects by selecting Physical Activity
in the Topic field. Click on Basic Submit to
get your results. The database is a service
of the American
Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).
- Discretionary
Grant Information System (DGIS).
Contains information for more than 900 grants
issued by the Maternal
and Child Health Bureau (MCHB). To identify
grants, select Abstracts. Type physical
activity in the search field. Click
on Search to get your results. To find products
and publications produced by MCHB training
grantees, select Program Data, Training, and
Search Products and Publications. Type physical
activity in the search field, and
click on Search to get your results.
- Health
Services Research Projects in Progress (HSRProj).
Provides information about ongoing health services
research and public health projects. To identify
projects, enter ("physical activity" OR
exercise) AND (children OR adolescents) in
the search box. Click on Search to get your
results. HSRProj is funded by the National
Library of Medicine (NLM).
- MCH
Organizations Database. Lists over
2,000 government, professional, and voluntary
organizations involved in MCH activities, primarily
at a national level. Find organizations focusing
on the topic by conducting three searches in
the database using the terms, "physical
activity", "physical education",
and "physical fitness" in the keyword
field of the database
search form. There will be overlap in the
records identified in these searches.
- National
Association of Counties: Healthy Counties Database.
Presents information about model policies,
programs, and initiatives that counties nationwide
have enacted to promote nutritious diets, physical
activity, and healthy built and social environments.
Search by county size, state, issue area (e.g.,
Physical Activity), best practice type, and
keyword.
- Nutrition,
Physical Activity and Obesity State Legislative
Database. Contains summaries of
state legislative bills related to nutrition,
physical activity, and obesity from 2001 to
the present. Select Physical Activity in the
Subject field, and select a state or topic
to narrow your search. Click on Search to get
your results. Links are provided to each state
legislature site where the full-text version
of the bill is available. This database is
presented by the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
- Partnership
to Fight Chronic Disease: Promising Practices.
Presents information about public and private
programs from across the country that have
proven successful in improving health and health
behaviors and reducing the burden of disease.
To identify programs, look under Find Programs
and click on Physical Activity/Fitness under
Select a Health Topic. Click on Go to get your
results. This resource is based on Keeping
America Healthy: A Catalog of Successful Programs (2008).
Additional materials accompany the report.
- Prevention
Research Centers (PRC). Presents
information about projects that focus on the
prevention and control of chronic diseases
and a wide range of additional public health
issues. To identify projects, go to the search
form. Select Nutrition and physical activity
for youth under the field, Health Topics. Click
on Search to get your results. The PRCs and
this database are funded by the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
- Shaping
America’s Youth (SAY) Program Registry.
Includes information on intervention programs
throughout the United States that are working
to improve physical activity and/or nutrition
in children and adolescents. Search by program
name, keyword, organization, state, and category
(e.g., programs addressing physical activity).
SAY is a public/private partnership committed
to improving physical activity and nutrition
in American infants, children, and adolescents.
- Also see Action
for Healthy Kids, the NCSL
Healthy Community Design and Access to Healthy
Food Legislation Database, and the NASBE
State School Health Policy Database.
Electronic Newsletters and Online Discussion Groups
- National
Association for Sport and Physical Education
(NASPE). Offers NASPE-Talk,
a collection of electronic discussion groups
on physical education topics. Also offers NASPE-Forum,
a moderated electronic discussion forum for
in-depth discussions on topics of interest
to physical education, sport, and physical
activity professionals.
- National
Coalition for Promoting Physical Activity (NCPPA).
Publishes two newsletters. NCPPA
News is published twice each month and
contains news about research, reports, funding
opportunities, and upcoming events on physical
activity. NCPPA’s public affairs newsletter,
the Activity
Advocate, is published 10 times a year
and covers federal and state legislative activity
concerning physical activity.
- University
of South Carolina Prevention Research Center.
Offers an electronic newsletter with information
about research, training opportunities, and
resources regarding physical activity and public
health. Also offers a listserv to advance public
health approaches to promoting physical activity
by creating a national network of public health
practitioners, researchers, and interested
others.
- Also see Action
for Healthy Kids, the CDC’s
Healthy Community Design News Listserv, and
the National Center on Physical
Activity and Disability (NCPAD) News.
- See the Maternal and Child Health Library's family resource brief, Physical Activity and Kids and Teens.
Resources on Specific Aspects of Physical Activity
Child Care and Early Childhood Education
- National
Child Care Information Center (NCCIC): Fit
Source. Presents a set of links to
resources for child care and after-school-program
professionals to help them incorporate physical
activity and nutrition into their programs.
Resources include activity and game ideas,
curricula, and lesson plans.
- WIC
Works Resource System: Physical Activity.
Links to resources about physical activity
for infants and children up to age 5. Also
see Food
and Fun for Families: Active Play for lesson
plans and educational materials about physical
activity developed by state programs involved
in the Fit WIC obesity-prevention initiative.
WIC Works presents resources for health and
nutrition professionals serving in the Special
Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants,
and Children (WIC). These resources are useful
for child care and early childhood education
professionals too.
- Also see the Educational
Resources Information Center (ERIC) Database.
- Active
Living by Design (ALBD). Presents
program and conference information, reports,
promising strategies, and other resources about
creating healthy eating and active living environments.
Includes a collection of recommended publications,
resources, organizations, and tools from the
major fields that are considered the foundation
of the active living movement. ALBD is a national
initiative supported by the Robert
Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) and located
at the University of North Carolina, Chapel
Hill.
- Active
Living Research (ALR). Offers
program information, research briefs, bibliographies,
and other tools and resources that examine
how environments and policies influence active
living for children and their families. ALR
is a national program of the Robert
Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF). Resources
include
Active Living Research Literature Database. Features journal article citations about the relationship between environment and policy and physical activity and obesity.
- Active
Living Resource Center (ALRC).
Presents educational materials and planning
and implementation tools to help community
organizers make neighborhoods more bicycle
and pedestrian friendly. ALRC is located at
the National Center for Bicycling and Walking
and operates with support from the Robert
Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF).
- Association
of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO):
Smart Growth Toolkit. Describes
the components of smart growth, including physical
activity, and their importance to public health.
Gives case studies from communities around
the country and links to resources to help
state and territorial health officials develop
model practices for their own communities.
- Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): Designing
and Building Healthy Places. Offers
program and conference information, fact sheets,
journal articles, a course curriculum, and
links to a wealth of resources about the interaction
between people and their environments. Topics
include children’s
health and the built environment and physical
activity. Resources and initiatives include
Active Environments. Presents program information and resources to encourage environmental and policy interventions that will affect increased levels of physical activity and improved public health by promoting walking, bicycling, and the development of accessible recreation facilities.
Health Impact Assessment (HIA). Presents links to a wealth of tools to evaluate the potential health effects of a project or policy before it is built or implemented.
Healthy Community Design News Listserv. This electronic discussion group addresses issues related to health and the built environment. An electronic newsletter that includes news articles, research, and updates on conferences and events related to livability is sent to all subscribers once a month.
Also see CDC’s Healthy Youth! and the Guide to Community Preventive Services.
- Leadership
for Healthy Communities: Active Living.
Presents a collection of materials and tools
for promoting physical activity, smart growth,
and healthy community design among state and
local government leaders. Leadership for Healthy
Communities is a national program of the Robert
Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF).
- National
Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL): Healthy
Community Design and Access to Healthy Food
Legislation Database. Describes state
legislation that seeks to increase access to
healthy food and opportunities for physical
activity. Search for legislation by state,
topic area (e.g., Bike/Pedestrian, Physical
Activity), year, bill type, bill status, and
bill number.
- Pedestrian
and Bicycle Information Center.
Presents a wealth of information and training
tools about health and safety, engineering,
advocacy, education, enforcement, access, and
mobility as it relates to increasing and improving
spaces for safe walking and bicycling as a
viable means of transportation and physical
activity. The center is funded by the Department
of Transportation Federal Highway Administration.
- California
Pan-Ethnic Health Network (CPEHN). 2009. Unlocking
the Playground: Achieving Equity in Physical
Activity Spaces. Oakland, CA: California
Pan-Ethnic Health Network (CPEHN). This report
describes models for joint-use agreements between
schools and communities for sharing spaces to
keep people active and healthy.
- Committee on Environmental Health.
2009. Built
Environment: Designing Communities to Promote Physical
Activity in Children. Elk Grove Village, IL: American
Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). This policy statement
describes the relationship between the built environment
and physical activity in children and makes recommendations
for pediatricians and governments to promote environments
that encourage more active lifestyles.
- Lee V, Mikkelsen L, Srikantharajah
J, Cohen L. 2008. Strategies
for Enhancing the Built Environment to Support
Healthy Eating and Active Living. Oakland,
CA: Healthy
Eating Active Living Convergence Partnership.
This policy brief outlines organizational practices
and public policies being considered to improve
the built environment in support of healthy eating
and regular physical activity.
- National
Policy and Legal Analysis Network to Prevent
Childhood Obesity (NPLAN). 2010. Complete
the Streets! Using Street Design to Create Healthier
Communities. Oakland, CA: Public
Health Law and Policy (PHLP). This webinar
describes Complete Streets, an initiative to
help communities change how streets are designed
and built so that residents of all ages and abilities
can travel easily and safely along community
streets, whether they are walking, biking, or
riding the bus. The webinar also contains an
advocacy success story from Columbia, MO. NPLAN's fact
sheet, model
comprehensive plan language, and model
laws and resolutions for advocates and community
members complement the webinar.
- Ogilvie RS, Zimmerman J. 2010. Opening
School Grounds to the Community After Hours:
A Toolkit for Increasing Physical Activity Through
Joint Use Agreements. Oakland, CA: Public
Health Law and Policy (PHLP). This toolkit
is designed to help communities and school districts
work together to develop joint use agreements
to increase access to recreational facilities
on school grounds.
School-Based Physical Activity
- Action
for Healthy Kids (AFHK). Offers program
information and tools, reports, fact sheets,
and an electronic newsletter to help support
positive changes in child and adolescent nutrition
and physical activity in the school environment.
AFHK receives guidance and direction from more
than 65 national organizations and government
agencies representing education, health, physical
activity, and nutrition. Resources and initiatives
include
Game On! The Ultimate Wellness Challenge. Presents a toolkit with instructions for schools to help students and their families learn to eat healthy and be active every day.
Lessons for Engaging Diverse Communities to Create Healthy Schools and Kids. (2009). [Report].
Progress or Promises? What’s Working For and Against Healthy Schools. (2008). [Report].
ReCharge! Energizing After-School. Offers a program kit to help students in grades 2 to 6 learn about and practice good nutrition and physical activity habits. ReCharge is a collaborative effort between AFHK and the National Football League.
School Programs. Presents information about nationally developed, evidence-based nutrition and physical activity programs for before, during, and after school.
Students Taking Charge. Presents information, a blog, and communication opportunities for students to share ideas and plan projects about eating right, being active, living healthy, and making their schools healthier.
Wellness Policy Tool. Presents an online tool for developing, implementing, and evaluating a school wellness policy that meets a local school district’s unique goals for nutrition and physical activity.
- Alliance
for a Healthier Generation: Healthy Schools
Program. Offers tools, tips, and resources
to implement this program aimed at preventing
childhood obesity by encouraging healthy behaviors
among students and adults in schools. The program
includes a component to increase opportunities
for students to exercise and play. The alliance
is a joint effort of the American
Heart Association (AHA) and the William
J. Clinton Foundation.
- American
Heart Association (AHA): Children and Exercise.
Offers encyclopedia entries and position statements
about the importance of physical activity for
children and adolescents. Presents program
information for school-based physical activity
programs supported by AHA: NFL
Play 60 Challenge, empowerME, Jump
Rope for Heart, Hoops
for Heart, HeartPower,
and the Alliance for a Healthier
Generation. Also presents resources
for policymakers about the importance of
physical education in schools.
- Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): Healthy
Youth! Physical Activity. Contains
school health policies and programs; data;
science-based strategies; and brochures for
parents, teachers, and principals about physical
activity and children and adolescents. Resources
and initiatives include
KidsWalk-to-School. Contains information and materials for this community-based program that aims to increase opportunities for daily physical activity by encouraging children to walk to and from school in groups accompanied by adults.
School Health Index. Contains a self-assessment and planning tool that schools can use to improve their health and safety policies and programs including those relevant to physical education and activity.
Youth Physical Activity Guidelines Toolkit. (2009). The materials highlight strategies that schools, families, and communities can use to support physical activity among youth. Includes fact sheets, a poster, user guide, and customizable PowerPoint presentations.
Also see CDC’s Tobacco-Free Sports Initiatives.
- Department
of Education (ED): Carol M. White Physical
Education Program (PEP). Presents
information about this grant program for local
educational agencies and community-based organizations
to initiate, expand, or improve physical education
programs, including after-school programs,
for children and adolescents.
- Educational
Resources Information Center (ERIC) Database.
Covers all aspects of education-related issues
through journal articles, research reports,
teaching guides, curricula, conference papers,
and books. Search the database to identify
many items about physical activity and children
and adolescents. Select Advanced Search. Next
to Search for: choose Descriptors (from Thesaurus)
and enter the term, "physical activities" OR "physical
education" OR exercise in the box next
to it. Scroll down on the search form to select
publication date, publication type, and/or
education level. To narrow your search further
or for additional searches, use the ERIC
Thesaurus to identify terms. ERIC is the
information database of the Department
of Education (ED).
- Leadership
for Healthy Communities: Schools.
Presents a collection of materials and tools
to promote better nutrition and more physical
activity in schools. Leadership for Healthy
Communities is a national program of the Robert
Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF). Recent
publications about physical activity include
Local School Wellness Policies: How Are Schools Implementing the Congressional Mandate? (2009). [Policy Brief].
- Media-Smart
Youth: Eat, Think, and Be Active!.
Offers a Web-based health-promotion program
designed to help young adolescents (ages 11
to 13) become aware of how media may influence
their nutrition and physical activity choices.
This after-school program was developed by
the Eunice
Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child
Health and Human Development (NICHD).
- National
Association of State Boards of Education (NASBE):
State School Health Policy Database.
Comprises a collection of state laws and policies
in key areas of school health. Click on View
by Topic. Scan the categories in the left sidebar
and choose a topic (e.g., Physical Education,
Requirements for Physical Educators, Requirements
for Athletic Coaches, Physical Activity Other
Than Physical Education, Playground/Facility
Safety).
- National
School Boards Association (NSBA): School Health
Resource Database. Comprises an online
catalog of sample policies, articles, and training
tools that address the many health issues facing
local school districts. Search the database
by selecting Physical Activity from
the list of topics. NSBA also offers Physical
Activity 101, an information packet with
data on physical activity levels among adolescents,
recommended guidelines for physical activity,
and policies that promote high-quality, lifelong
patterns of physical activity and wellness.
- PE
Central. Provides lesson and assessment
ideas and instructional resources for health
and physical education teachers and parents
to help children and adolescents become more
physically active. PE Central was developed
by faculty and doctoral students in Virginia
Tech’s Health and Physical Education
Program.
- Safe
Routes to School (SRTS) National Partnership.
Offers research highlights, advocacy tools,
and reports to promote the practice of safe
bicycling and walking to and from schools to
increase physical activity, reduce traffic
congestion, improve air quality, and enhance
neighborhood safety. The SRTS National Partnership
is a network of more than 400 organizations,
government agencies, schools, and professionals.
Recent publications include
Establishing a Safe Routes to School State Network. (2008). [Guide].
Safe Routes to School: Increases Physical Activity and Improves Health. (2008). [Report].
Safe Routes to School State Network Project: 2007–2009 Final Report. (2009).
State Level Policies that Influence Safe Routes to School. (2008). [Policy brief].
- American
Cancer Society, American
Diabetes Association, American
Heart Association. 2008. Learning
for Life: Physical Education in Schools.
Atlanta, GA: American Cancer Society; Alexandria,
VA: American Diabetes Association; Dallas, TX:
American Heart Association. This fact sheet briefly
describes the health consequences of a sedentary
lifestyle, the benefits of physical activity
for children, and an action plan for physical
education in schools.
- Chriqui JF, Schneider L, Chaloupka
FJ, Ide K, Pugach O. 2009. Local
Wellness Policies: Assessing School District Strategies
for Improving Children’s Health. School Years
2006–07 and 2007–08. Chicago, IL: Bridging
the Gap. This report examines school district
wellness policies that have significant potential
for improving school nutrition and physical activity
environments. The wellness policies are a federal
requirement for school districts participating
in the National School Lunch Program or other child
nutrition programs.
- McMillan TE. 2009. Walking
and Biking to School, Physical Activity and Health
Outcomes. San Diego, CA: Active
Living Research. This brief summarizes research
on active transport to school, physical activity
levels, and health outcomes. It also explores
the factors that influence walking and biking
to school, including the impact of SRTS
programs.
- National
Alliance for Nutrition and Activity (NANA).
2005. Model
School Wellness Policies. Washington, DC:
National Alliance for Nutrition and Activity
(NANA). This comprehensive set of model nutrition
and physical activity policies is intended to
provide guidance to local school districts on
meeting the federal requirements of the Child
Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act of 2004.
Topics include physical activity and physical
education. Sixty health, nutrition, physical
activity, and education organizations assisted
with or supported the development of these model
school-wellness policies.
- Trost SG. 2009. Active
Education: Physical Education, Physical Activity
and Academic Performance. San Diego, CA: Active
Living Research. This brief summarizes evidence
about the relationship between physical activity
and academic performance among children and adolescents.
- Also see the American
Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation
and Dance (AAHPERD), the American
College of Sports Medicine (ACSM), Girls
on the Run (GOTR), the National
Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA),
the Physical Activity
Guidelines for Americans, the President’s
Council on Physical Fitness and Sports (PCPFS),
the Women’s Sports Foundation,
and MyPyramid Tracker.
- Disabled
Sports USA. Contains program information
for this national network of community-based
chapters offering a variety of sports rehabilitation
and recreation programs to anyone with a permanent
disability.
- National
Center on Accessibility (NCA).
Presents a webinar series, technical reports,
educational materials, articles, product listings,
and program information for consumers; health
professionals; and the parks, recreation, and
tourism industries about recreation-related
accessibility issues for people with disabilities.
NCA is part of Indiana University's School
of Health, Physical Education, and Recreation.
- National
Center on Physical Activity and Disability
(NCPAD). Offers resources about physical
activity and disability that include an electronic
newsletter and fact sheets about activities,
games, camps, recreational pursuits, and sports
that have been adapted to the needs of people
with disabilities. NCPAD is located at the
University of Illinois at Chicago.
- Special
Olympics International (SOI). Contains
program and event information for year-round
sports training and athletic competitions for
children, adolescents, and adults with intellectual
disabilities. Includes sports rules, program
guides, coaching guides, articles, and a program
locator. Special Olympics serves more than
2.5 million individuals with intellectual disabilities
in more than 120 countries.
- Popper B, Irish S, Dworetzky B,
Anderson B, Minihan P, Must A. 2008. Family
Matters: Promoting Health and Wellness for Children
with Special Heath Care Needs—Family Booklet.
Albuquerque, NM: Family
Voices. This booklet presents guidelines, tips,
and resources on healthy eating, physical activity,
and limiting screen time. Also available in Spanish.
- Also see the Physical
Activity Guidelines for Americans and BAM!
Body and Mind.
Physical Activity and Children and
Adolescents: Knowledge Path, 5th ed. (March 2010).
(Updated: July 2010).
Author: Susan Brune Lorenzo, M.L.S., Maternal and Child
Health Library.
Reviewers: Cicley Gay, Women's Sports Foundation; Olivia
K. Pickett, M.A., M.L.S., Maternal and Child Health
Library.
