Costa et al., 2023 - Effect of a school-based multicomponent intervention on time-segmented physical activity and sedentary behavior among Brazilian adolescents: The Movimente Study

Objective: To assess the effect of the Movimente Study on device-measured physical activity (PA) and sedentary behavior (SB) in two-time segments of the school day amongst Brazilian adolescents.Design: Cluster-randomised controlled trial.Methods: Six elementary schools were randomized into the intervention (Movimente group) or control group (CG). Participants were in 7th-9th grades. The present study’s sample consisted of students from two small-sized schools (one from the Movimente group and another from the control group) since there was a limited number of accelerometers. A school year (2017) multicomponent intervention was delivered consisting of three components: 1) teacher training, 2) education curriculum, and 3) school environment. PA and SB were measured using GT3x+ ActiGraph hip-worn accelerometers at baseline and end-intervention. The segments of the day were: In-School (08:00–11:59) and Out-of-School (12:00–22:00) time. A two-level linear mixed model assessed the effect of the intervention on light-intensity PA (LPA), moderate- to vigorous-intensity PA (MVPA), SB, and MVPA/SB ratio within and between groups.Results: There was a significant effect on the Movimente group compared to the control group for MVPA, SB, and MVPA/SB ratio performed in the Out-of-school segment, but not in the In-school segment. However, there were no significant differences within- nor between-group differences in LPA in both day segments. Conclusions: The Movimente Study increased the MVPA, the ratio of MVPA/SB, and decreased SB of the adolescents compared to their peers in the control group in the Out-of-school segment.