Assessing physical activity/behavior of adolescents living in the Pacific with accelerometer data: 231 GENEActiv records in New Caledonia.

This paper presents a dataset related to the physical activity behavior of 206 adolescents (107 females and 99 males) from 11 to 16 years old and 25 adults (13 females and 12 males) living in rural (77 adolescents and 15 adults) and urban (129 adolescents and 10 adults) parts of New Caledonia, an archipelago of the South Pacific. Physical behavior was assessed through 60-Hz triaxial GENEActiv accelerometers worn for 5 to 7 consecutive days between July 2018 and April 2019. Participants were randomly recruited at school and trained staff fitted the devices on the nondominant wrist, at which time all were reminded of the expectations while wearing the device.

Associations between academic achievement and weight status in a multi-ethnic sample of New Caledonian adolescents.

Several studies have reported a negative association between obesity and academic achievement in school-aged children. In the Pacific region, the prevalence of adolescent overweight is high, but no study has considered issues of academic achievement in this population. To rectify this, we examined relationships between academic achievement and weight status in a multi-ethnic (European and Kanak) sample of New Caledonian adolescents.

Self-reported and accelerometry measures of sleep components in adolescents living in Pacific Island countries and territories: Exploring the role of sociocultural background.

Objectives: The objective of this study is to assess the concordance and its association with sociocultural background of a four-question survey with accelerometry in a multiethnic adolescent population, regarding sleep components. Based on questions from the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index and adapted to a school context, the questionnaire focussed on estimating sleep onset time, wake-up time and sleep duration on both weekdays and weekends. This subjective survey was compared with accelerometry data while also considering the influence of sociocultural factors (sex, place of living, ethnic community and socio-economic status).

Prevalence, causes and contexts of childhood overweight and obesity in the Pacific region: a scoping review.

Background: Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are a major threat to health and development and account for 75% of deaths in the Pacific Islands Countries and Territories (PICTs). Childhood obesity has been identified as a main risk factor for NCDs later in life. This review compiled overweight and obesity (OWOB) prevalence (anthropometric data) for children aged six to 12 years old living in the Pacific region and identified possible related causes.

Generational issues in linking family farming production, traditional food in diet, physical activity and obesity in Pacific Islands countries and territories: the case of the Melanesian population on Lifou Island.

In the Melanesian culture, traditional activities are organized around family farming, although the lifestyle transition taking place over the last several decades has led to imbalances in diet and physical activity, with both leading to obesity. The aim of this interdisciplinary study was to understand the links between family farming (produced, exchanged, sold, and consumed food), diet (focused on produced, hunted, and caught food), physical activity (sedentary, light, and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity) and obesity in Melanesian Lifou Island families (parents and children). Forty families, including 142 adults and children, completed individual food frequency questionnaires, wore tri-axial accelerometers for seven continuous days, and had weight and height measured with a bio-impedance device.