Association Between Daily Physical Education Attendance and Meeting 24-Hour Movement Guidelines in Adolescence and Adulthood

Purpose: To investigate the relationship between participation in physical education lessons (PELs), i.e., minutes or frequency per week, and meeting the 24-hour movement guidelines (i.e., physical activity, screen time, and sleep duration) during adolescence (12–17 years old) and adulthood (33–39 years old). Methods: We analyzed data from individuals who participated in Waves I (1994–1995) and V (2016–2018) of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health. We determined total weekly minutes of PELs and PELs participation by asking how many days adolescents attended PELs in an average week at school, with three possible responses as follows: 0, 1–4, or 5 days/week. Movement behaviors were assessed through self-completed questionnaires in both waves. Results: Daily PELs participation during adolescence was related to higher odds of meeting five of more weekly sessions of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity and all three guidelines in both sexes compared with adolescents who reported no days of PELs per week (men: incidence rate ratio [IRR] = 1.70, 95% CI 1.02–3.12; women: IRR = 3.81, 95% CI 1.65–8.77). Additionally, each additional weekly hour of PELs increased the likelihood of meeting all three recommendations (men: IRR = 1.11, 95% CI 1.05–1.35; women: IRR = 1.67, 95% CI 1.27–2.24). During adulthood, daily PELs was also related to a higher likelihood of meeting all three recommendations in both sexes (men: IRR = 1.04, 95% CI 1.01–1.07; women: IRR = 1.07, 95% CI 1.00–1.11). Each additional weekly hour of PELs increased the odds of meeting all three recommendations (men: IRR = 1.02, 95% CI 1.01–1.05; women: IRR = 1.03, 95% CI 1.01–1.06). Discussion: Daily PELs attendance was linked to healthy movement behaviors during adolescence, and these benefits could extend into adulthood.