Developing a Social Media Resource to Promote Physical Activity in Teenage Girls

Original Editor - Iain Berry, Catherine Muir, Carol Newlands, Helen Power, Melanie Reis, John Watt as part of the QMU Current and Emerging Roles in Physiotherapy Practice Project

Top Contributors - Melanie Reis, John Watt, Carol Newlands, Helen Power, Iain Berry, Catherine Muir, Kim Jackson, Admin, 127.0.0.1, Michelle Lee and Alicia Fernandes  

Package Aims

This wiki resource is designed primarily for physiotherapists who are actively seeking to increase participation in physical activity through the use of social media. While this resource has focused on promoting physical activity in teenage females and has centred on the social networking site ‘Facebook’, it is hoped that the principles highlighted will be of benefit to any health professional or wider body, seeking to promote health and wellbeing, regardless of the targeted demographic or facet of social media adopted.

The wide ranging physical, social and psychological benefits that can be gained from physical activity are well documented, despite this, participation levels in teenage females remain low. This resource specifically aims to address this issue. Conventional methods of promoting the benefits of physical activity appear to be failing this group, therefore it is believed that the emerging growth in social media can be a useful and productive method of engagement with this demographic.

This resource is not designed to be a ‘how-to-guide’ or ‘blueprint’ to expanding social media, it is however designed to make the user aware of some of the numerous issues that revolve around developing social media as an organic and interactive medium to promote health and wellbeing. It is hoped that this resource will act as a useful tool to the user in developing their own individual resource, as a template for potential in-service education and as a constructive part of the users continuing professional development.

Learning Outcomes

• By the end of this resource the user will be able to:
• Justify and critique the need for health promotion and increased physical activity for teenage females.
• Critically evaluate the current guidelines regarding physical activity in young people.
• Analyse participation and physical activity levels in teenage females.
• Critically evaluate social media as a medium by which to engage teenage females.
• Develop a social media resource aimed at promoting physical activity for teenage females.
• Synthesise appropriate information required to create a social media resource for this population.
• Evaluate the effectiveness of this resource relative to its aims.

Current Guidelines

In 2011 Start Active, Stay Actice  was published in conjunction with the Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety; The Scottish Government; Welsh Government; and the Department of Health. This UK wide document presents guidelines on the amount, duration, frequency and manner of physical activity required across various age related demographics to achieve general health benefits.

This report from all four Chief Medical Officers across the UK is aimed at a range of organisations (inclusive of, but not limited to the NHS and local authorities) whose intension is to design services to promote physical activity. The document was formulated for policymakers, professionals and practitioners whose aim is to devise and effectuate policies and measures that employs the promotion of physical activity, sport and exercise in order to achieve health gains.

Start Active, Stay Active highlighted three guidelines specifically aimed at children and young people (5-18 years) irrespective of gender, race or socio-economic background: 

1. All children and young people should engage in moderate to vigorous intensity physical activity for at least 60 minutes and up to several hours every day.
2. Vigorous intensity activities, including those that strengthen muscle and bone, should be incorporated at least three days a week.
3. All children and young people should minimise the amount of time spent being sedentary (sitting) for extended periods.

Types of activities recommended by Start Active, Stay Active.

Evidence Base Regarding Current Guidelines

Significant evidence, composed of both observational and experimental research, suggests that regular involvement in physical activity among children and young people offers benefits for physical and psychological well-being both in the short and long term.       
With specific reference to the guidelines highlighted by Start Active, Stay Active,  greater levels of physical activity have been shown to be associated with more positive health related outcomes in studies which reported improvements in health related measures as a result of exercise based interventions(10, 11, 12). Equally, although some health benefits have been reported as a result of only 30 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity every day, it has been suggested that this should be implemented as a ‘stepping-stone’ towards the optimal level of 60 minutes.(13,14)

Physical activity of vigorous intensity has been shown to improve components of health such as cardiorespiratory fitness, bone strength and muscular strength.   10, 11). More recent evidence (10, 11) suggests that the optimum amount of physical activity required to improve bone health may be greater than previously understood,  this is reflected in the guidelines as an increase from twice to three times per week. The current evidence  15) suggests that extended sedentary behavior is an independent risk factor for reduced health and correlates strongly with obesity/overweight and metabolic dysfunction although the evidence does not offer any specific maximum/minimum recommended periods of sedentary behavior.

Other guidelines specifically addressing physical activity and teenagers include NICE (2009) (16) and WHO (2010) (17). Equally, specific mention at this point should be made to the The Scottish Allied Health Professions Directors (AHPD) ‘Pledge to Increase Physical Activity in Scotland’ (2012) (18). This pledge, aimed at all allied health professionals, seeks to increase the level of physical activity in Scotland, importantly this pledge specifically makes reference to the use of social media:

    “Use social media opportunities to promote the Pledge and physical activity.” 18

The evidence behind the AHPD ‘Pledge to Increase Physical Activity in Scotland’ 18 is summarised in this YOUTUBE clip: 

References

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