Physical Activity Levels, Body Mass Index (BMI), and Academic Stress Among School Students: A Cross-Sectional Correlational Study

Regular physical exercise, proper weight, and reasonable requirements for education are all considered important aspects for good mental health of adolescents; however, children nowadays suffer with the increased sedentary time as well as the increasing pressure of academics. This cross-sectional correlational study conducted aims to find out the correlation between physical activity, Body Mass Index (BMI), and academic stress experienced by the 250 school-going students of classes six till twelve. To collect information about the demographic factors of the students, physical activity, academic stress, and lifestyle characteristics, a predesigned self-administered questionnaire was used with the observation of height and weight of the participants for BMI calculation as per WHO standards. Physical activity was evaluated through a frequency-based scale that included sports, exercise, walking/cycling, physical education, outdoor activities, and stretching/yoga, while academic stress was assessed with the help of a seven-item scale that measured workload, tests, grades, time management, assignments, teacher demands, and exam preparation. The results showed a significant negative correlation between physical activity and BMI (r = –0.26, p = 0.001) and physical activity and academic stress (r = –0.41, p < 0.001), while BMI had a significant positive correlation with academic stress (r = 0.29, p = 0.002). Gender-wise analysis showed that male students exhibited more physical activity and less academic stress than female students. Rural students had a high level of physical activity in comparison to urban students, while academic stress increased considerably with academic years. The findings show the important role of regular exercise in health and physical education programs in schools.