Parental and peer supports are associated with an active lifestyle of adolescents: evidence from a population-based survey

OBJECTIVES: Parental and peer support can foster adolescents' activity behaviours; however, little is known about how such support are linked with adolescents' active lifestyle in non-Western settings. The study aimed to explore associations of parental and peer support with an active lifestyle of adolescents in Malaysia.

STUDY DESIGN: This is a cross-sectional study.

METHODS: We used data from the 2012 Malaysian Global School-based Student Health Survey, which covered adolescents aged 11-17 years (51% girls). Adolescents were asked about their physical activity, sitting time, and levels of parental and peer support. Participants with ≥60 min of moderate to vigorous physical activity per day and ≤2 h of sitting time per day were categorised as having an 'active lifestyle'. Binary logistic regression was used to examine the relationships by gender and age group (11-14 and 15-17 years).

RESULTS: Of the participating adolescents (n = 12,081), 15.3% reported to have an active lifestyle (boys: 22.0%; girls: 8.8%). About 31% reported to have higher levels of parental support, whereas 47% reported higher levels of peer support. Higher parental and peer support were significantly associated with an active lifestyle of boys across both age groups. Girls with higher parental support had higher odds of reporting an active lifestyle in both age groups, whereas higher peer support was significantly associated with an active lifestyle among girls aged 11-14 years.

CONCLUSIONS: This study uniquely extends the current evidence by examining the associations of parental and peer support with physical activity and sitting time combined. More research is needed to understand how different types of social support can influence adolescents' active lifestyle.