Physical activity, body mass index, and health status among youth with severe visual impairments aged 13--17 years in the United States

Background: Limited population-based data is available in the United States (US) examining physical activity engagement, weight status, and health status among youth with visual impairments. Objective: To compare parent-reported physical activity participation, weight status, and health status among a nationally representative sample of US children with and without severe visual impairments. Methods: This observational, cross-sectional analysis utilized data from the 2011–2012 National Survey of Children's Health (NSCH). The NSCH data is composed of a cross-sectional probability sample of noninstitutionalized youth aged 0–17 years in the US. This study focused on 28,390 adolescents (aged 13–17 years); 106 with SVIs and 28,284 without severe visual impairments. Parent reported physical activity participation, height and weight, and overall health status were utilized in this study to understand nationally representative trends. Results: Adolescents with severe visual impairments participated in fewer days of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity per week (Mean = 2.40, SE = 0.65) than those without impairments (Mean = 3.93, SE = 0.03), t = 2.35, p =.02. Prevalence of obesity/overweight did not differ between youth with and without severe visual impairments, OR = 1.032 (CI = 0.45, 2.37), p =.94. Youth with severe visual impairments were more likely to have poor health (9.3%), compared to youth without impairments (3.4%), OR = 2.89 (CI = 1.13, 7.41), p =.03. Conclusions: Participants with severe visual impairments engaged in less physical activity and had poorer health status than participants without impairments. Future interventions, tailored to this populations’ unique needs, are needed to increase physical activity and improve health status.