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Updated: Nov 16, 2025
08:45
Assessment of Physical Activity Intensity with Accelerometers and Oxygen Consumption
Published on: June 20, 2025
311
Comparison between self-reported and accelerometer-derived measurements for classifying children and adolescents as
Nicolas Aguilar-Farias1, Sebastian Miranda-Marquez1, Marcelo Toledo-Vargas1
1Universidad de La Frontera, Temuco, Chile.
Cadernos De Saude Publica
|February 24, 2021
Summary
Self-reported physical activity levels in children and adolescents do not align with accelerometer data. These methods for measuring moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) are not interchangeable and should be used complementarily.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric health and exercise science.
- Biomedical engineering and wearable technology.
- Public health and physical activity surveillance.
Background:
- Accurate measurement of physical activity is crucial for understanding child and adolescent health.
- Self-report questionnaires are commonly used but may be subject to bias.
- Objective measures like accelerometers offer a more precise assessment of physical activity.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare self-reported physical activity with accelerometer-derived data in Chilean children and adolescents.
- To evaluate the agreement between subjective and objective methods for classifying physical activity levels.
- To determine if self-report and accelerometer data are interchangeable for assessing physical activity in youth.
Main Methods:
- 247 Chilean students (children and adolescents) participated in the study.
- Participants wore hip-worn accelerometers for seven consecutive days.
- Physical activity was classified based on daily accumulation and average moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) from accelerometers and self-report.
Main Results:
- Only 0.8% of participants met the accelerometer criteria for being active on all seven days, while 10.5% averaged ≥ 60 minutes of MVPA daily.
- Based on self-report, 7.2% of participants were classified as physically active.
- Poor agreement was found between self-reported and accelerometer-derived physical activity classifications.
Conclusions:
- Significant discrepancies exist between self-reported and accelerometer-based methods for classifying physical activity in youth.
- The findings indicate that self-report and accelerometer measurements are not interchangeable.
- Complementary use of both methods is recommended for a comprehensive assessment of physical activity in children and adolescents.
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