Influence of asthma and obesity on physical activity levels in 9th grade girls: A secondary analysis of the 2011 youth risk behavior survey

Background: Chronic diseases are the leading cause of death for Americans. Asthma and obesity are two of the leading illnesses among youth. One in five youth are obese and one in twelve have asthma. The purpose of this study was to analyze the relationship among asthma, obesity, and physical activity in 9th grade girls. The lack of research focused on the co-existence of asthma and obesity and their relationship with physical activity requires further exploration. Method: A secondary analysis of the 2011 Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) was conducted. Two questions were used to explore the relationship: 1) During the last 7 days, on how many days were you physically active for a total of at least 60 minutes per day? 2) Do you still have asthma? Also, body mass index (BMI) percentage was used for further analysis. From these questions, data was collected and relationships were analyzed. Results: The variables used to explore asthma, obesity, and physical activity were found to be significantly correlated. A significant association between asthma and BMI was found; and there was also a significant correlation between asthma and physical activity in girls (p<0.05). Girls with a lower BMI were more likely to be physically active (p <.000); however, asthma was not predictive of physical activity. Conclusion: There seems to be an association between asthma and physical activity; however, further research is needed to determine the extent of that relationship. These results support previous research studies, suggesting that physical activity is affected by adolescents' weight.