Leisure-time sedentary behavior, alcohol consumption and sexual intercourse among adolescents aged 12-15 years in 19 countries from Africa, the Americas, and Asia

Smith, Lee, Jackson, Sarah E., Jacob, Louis, Grabovac, Igor, Yang, Lin, Johnstone, James, McDermott, Daragh T., Gordon, Dan, López-Sánchez, Guillermo F., Stefanac, Sinisa and Koyanagi, Ai (2019) Leisure-time sedentary behavior, alcohol consumption and sexual intercourse among adolescents aged 12-15 years in 19 countries from Africa, the Americas, and Asia. Journal of Sexual Medicine, 16 (9). pp. 1355-1363. ISSN 1743-6109

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Abstract

Background: The association between sedentary behavior and sexual behavior has not been investigated among adolescents, while the influential factors in this association are largely unknown. Aim: To (i) investigate the association between leisure-time sedentary behavior and sexual intercourse, and (ii) test for mediation by alcohol consumption, drug use, physical activity, bullying victimization, parental support/monitoring, loneliness, and depressive symptoms, in a large global sample of young adolescents. Methods: Data were analyzed from 34674 adolescents aged 12-15 years participating in the Global School-based Student Health Survey. Participants reported the number of hours spent in leisure-time sedentary behavior on a typical day (<1, 1-2, 3-4, 5-8, >8). Data on alcohol consumption, drug use, physical activity, bullying victimization, parental support/monitoring, loneliness, and depressive symptoms were considered as potential mediators. Outcome: Participants reported whether or not they had sexual intercourse in the past 12 months (yes/no). Results: The prevalence of past 12-month sexual intercourse was 11.9%, while the prevalence of <1, 1-2, 3-4, 5-8, and >8 hours per day of leisure-time sedentary behavior were 26.7%, 35.6%, 21.4%, 11.5%, and 4.9%, respectively. There was a dose-dependent relationship between sedentary behavior and odds of reporting sexual intercourse: compared with <1 hour/day of sedentary behavior, the OR (95%CI) of sexual intercourse associated with 1-2, 3-4, 5-8, and >8 hours/day of sedentary behavior were 1.12 (0.94-1.33), 1.22 (1.01-1.48), 1.34 (1.08-1.66), and 1.76 (1.37-2.27), respectively. There was no significant interaction by sex. The largest proportion of the association between sedentary behavior and sexual intercourse was explained by alcohol use (% mediated 21.2%), with other factors explaining an additional 11.2%. Clinical Translation: Interventions to reduce leisure-time sedentary and/or alcohol consumption may contribute to a reduction in the proportion of adolescents engaging in sexual intercourse at a young age. Strengths and Limitations: The strength of this study is the large, representative sample of adolescents from 19 countries. However, the cross-sectional design means causality or temporal associations could not be established. Conclusions: In young adolescents, leisure-time sedentary behavior is positively associated with odds of having sexual intercourse in both boys and girls, in a dose-dependent manner. Alcohol consumption appears to be a key mediator of this relationship.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Keywords:	Sexual Intercourse, Adolescents, Sedentary Behaviour, Alcohol, Global School-Based Student Health Survey
Faculty:	Faculty of Science & Engineering
Depositing User:	Lee Smith
Date Deposited:	26 Jun 2019 15:37
Last Modified:	25 Jan 2022 10:10
URI:	https://arro.anglia.ac.uk/id/eprint/704456

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