Determinants of Physical Activity and Sports Team Participation Among California Children: Do We Have an Even Playing Field?

Background: The objectives of this study are: 1) to identify socioeconomic determinants of physical activity and sports team participation among all California children, and 2) to identify variation in physical activity among subpopulations of Asian and Hispanic children based on region of origin. Methods: The study uses data from 7,434 children ages 3 to 11 years old from the 2007 California Health Interview Survey. The 2007 California Health Interview Survey is a population-based telephone survey that collected data from a sample representative of California's non-institutionalized population living in households. Results: Multivariate logistic regression analyses indicate that there is substantial variation in physical activity and sports team participation among populations of all California children, Hispanics, and Asians. Among all children, the least likely to have high physical activity are older, female, Asian or Hispanic, live in an urban area, and first-generation immigrants. Sports participation is lowest for younger children, females, Asians, children from low-income households, children living in households with adults who have less than a high school education, and first-generation immigrants. There is little variation in physical activity and sports participation between subpopulations of Asian and Hispanic children based on region of origin. Conclusions: Given the rising rates and cost of obesity in the United States, public health practitioners should seek to create more opportunities for structured physical activity among vulnerable populations of children, including Hispanics, Asians, girls, and immigrants.