School physical activity-related policies and actual physical education class attendance, sports team participation, and overall physical activity reported by high school students

INTRODUCTION: Schools have adopted various policies to promote students' physical activity (PA) as part of efforts to reduce childhood obesity. However, there is no clear evidence that the school policies have been fully implemented or increased students' PA levels. This study examines whether students' reported attendance to physical education (PE) classes, participation in sports teams, and overall PA levels are associated with state-level measures of PA-related school policies. METHODS: This study analyzes data collected from state-representative schools and students from multiple states. The state-level measures of PA-related school policies are from the 2008 School Health Profiles data (N=4,903 schools). The individual-level data include state-representative high school students (N=67,856) who participated in their state's Youth Risk Behavior Survey in 2009. RESULTS: Approximately 41% of schools required PE for all grades. But, 87% of schools allowed students an exemption from required PE. On average, 58% of high schools offered intramural sports activities. The percentage of schools requiring PE for all grades was positively associated with attending PE every day (odds ratio (OR) =2.70 per 10% increase) and actually exercising for more than 20 minutes in PE classes (OR=10.6). The percentage of schools offering sports teams or activities was associated with a higher likelihood of sports participation (OR =1.74) among students. However, overall PA levels were not associated with school PA-related policies. DISCUSSION: The results suggest that requiring PE for students of all grade levels and providing intramural sports opportunities are effective in engaging high school students in school-based PA.