Association between meeting the 24-hour movement guideline and anxiety status in Chinese school-aged adolescents

Background/Objective: Adherence to the 24-hour movement guidelines (24-HMG) and various favorable health outcomes has been extensively documented; however, its relationship with anxiety among school-aged adolescents in China remains less explored. This study aims to examine the association between complying with the 24-HMG and anxiety status among school-aged adolescents in China.Methods: Cross-sectional data on movement behavior, encompassing physical activity, sedentary behavior, and sleep, were collected through the Health Behavior School-aged Children Survey from 670 adolescents (mean age=13.57±0.98). Anxiety was self-reported using the Self-Rating Anxiety Scale. Logistic regression was employed to assess the association between meeting the 24-HMG and anxiety status.Results: Only 2.1% of participants met all three 24-HMG, while 26.0% did not meet any of the recommendations. Additionally, 8.2% of participants reported experiencing anxiety. Logistic regression analyses indicated a significant association between adherence to the sedentary behavior guidelines (Odds Ratio [OR] = 0.301, p < 0.05), sleep guidelines (OR = 0.260, p < 0.005), or both (OR = 0.168, p < 0.005), and a reduced likelihood of anxiety compared to non-adherence. Conversely, adherence to none of the 24-HMG was significantly associated with an increased likelihood of anxiety (OR=3.343, p<0.05), highlighting a greater probability of experiencing anxiety among these individuals compared to those who adhered to the guidelines.Conclusion: Only a minority of Chinese adolescents adhere to healthy movement behavior guidelines. It is important to consider the holistic approach of 24-HMG in mitigating anxiety among school-aged adolescents in China. Encouraging more high-quality research is essential to identify the correlates of movement behaviors in adolescents and design effective interventions.