Increasing inequality in physical activity among Minnesota secondary schools, 2001-2010

Abstract

Background: Two Healthy People 2020 goals are to increase physical activity (PA) and to reduce disparities in PA. We explored whether PA at the school level changed over time in Minnesota schools and whether differences existed by demographic and socioeconomic factors. Methods: We examine self-reported PA (n = 276,089 students; N = 276 schools) for 2001-2010 from the Minnesota Student Survey linked to school demographic data from the National Center for Education Statistics and the Rural-Urban Commuting Area Codes. We conducted analyses at the school level using multivariable linear regression with cluster-robust recommendation errors. Results: Overall, students who met PA recommendations increased from 59.8% in 2001 to 66.3% in 2010 (P