[Practice of physical activity among youths in a city in the semiarid region of Brazil].

The scope of this study was to establish the prevalence of physical activity among young people and to analyze its association with demographic, socioeconomic and behavioral factors. All youths aged 13 to 19 years of age living in the city of Caracol, Piauí, Brazil, were studied, comprising a total of 1,112 individuals. Data collection was conducted by means of household interviews using a standardized questionnaire. The dependent variable was the practice of physical activity in a typical week. Youths who performed moderate-to-vigorous-physical activity of at least one hour every day of the week were considered physically active. The prevalence of physically active youths was 12.6% (95% CI 10.6 to 14.5), being higher in males (20.3%; 95% CI 16.8 to 23.7) and those in the upper third of the asset indicator variable (16.5; 95% CI 12.7 to 20.3), and inversely related to age. Among males, afro-descendants were more active (32.3%; 95% CI 14.9 to 49.7), whereas the Arian females were more active (12.7%; 95% CI 5.2 to 20.2). The prevalence of physical activity was low in this population, particularly among females (5.9%; 95% CI 4.0 to 7.8), older youths and youth from the less privileged socioeconomic brackets.