Physical Activity, Sedentary Behaviour and Sleep (PASS) Indicators

  • Last updated: 2023-03-27

The PASS Indicators are grouped by movement behaviours and broken down by individual, family/social and built/society environment.

Select an item from each list below:
Percentage (%) of children and youth who meet physical activity recommendations by accumulating an average of at least 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity per day, aged 5-17 years, by highest level of education (household), Canada, 2018-2019
0102030405060708090100Less than high schoolHigh school graduatePost-secondary graduateHighest level of education - householdPercentage (%)Less than high school: 58 High school graduate: 35.5 Post-secondary graduate: 44.3 Total population: 43.9
Percentage (%) of children and youth who meet physical activity recommendations by accumulating an average of at least 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity per day, aged 5-17 years, by highest level of education (household), Canada, 2018-2019
Highest level of education - householdPercentage (%)95% CI
Total population43.935.6 - 52.1
Less than high school58.0E24.7 - 91.2
High school graduate35.5E11.4 - 59.6
Post-secondary graduate44.335.6 - 53.0

Notes: This indicator measures average daily moderate-to-vigorous physical activity.

Source: Canadian Health Measures Survey 2018-2019

ECells and bars highlighted in yellow should be interpreted with caution.

(NEW) highlights indicators not previously reported upon and/or for which the measure or data source has changed.

aDue to changes in survey methodology, the PASS 2023 estimates for this indicator should not be compared to those from previous PASS editions.

Measure Description

DefinitionThe physical activity recommendation within the Canadian 24-Hour Movement Guidelines for Children and Youth (https://csepguidelines.ca/guidelines/children-youth) calls for an average of at least 60 minutes of daily moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity (MVPA) for children and youth aged 5-17 years. This indicator uses accelerometer data to estimate the proportion of Canadian children and youth meeting this recommendation.
Data SourceCanadian Health Measures Survey (CHMS), Statistics Canada
PopulationPopulation aged 5 to 17 years
Data AvailableSex, age group (5 year, life-course), highest level of education (household), household income, immigrant status, and trend (age-standardized)
Estimate CalculationNumerator: Number of children and youth aged 5 to 17 who obtained an average of 60 minutes per day or more of MVPA. Denominator: Total population, aged 5 to 17 years. Respondents aged 5 to 17 years who returned accelerometers with at least four valid days of data (3 valid days among 5 year-olds) were included in the analysis of this indicator. The Statistics Canada derived variable AMMDADK (physical activity guidelines flag for children and youth aged 5 to 17) was used to calculate this indicator in CHMS Cycle 5 and Cycle 6. For trends over time, the derived variables AMMDMVA1-AMMDMVA4 and AMMDMVA5-AMMDMVA7 (where available), were used in CHMS Cycle 4 and prior. AMMDMVAx provides the number of minutes of MVPA on a given day (x) of wear. The number of minutes of MVPA on each of the valid days was summed and the daily totals averaged.
Additional RemarksThis indicator changed starting in the PASS 2020 edition. With the release of the 24-Hour Movement Guidelines for Children and Youth, the recommendation for children to achieve 60 min daily MVPA was not changed. However, in response to the surveillance recommendations provided by Tremblay et al. (https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/10.1139/apnm-2016-0151), this indicator is being operationalized differently. Specifically, this recommendation was previously operationalized as accumulating ≥ 60 minutes of MVPA on at least 6 days of the week, but starting in PASS 2020 edition it is being operationalized as achieving ≥ 60 min of MVPA per day when averaged across all valid days in a week.

Suggested Citation

Center for Surveillance and Applied Research, Public Health Agency of Canada. Physical Activity, Sedentary Behaviour and Sleep (PASS) Indicators, 2023 Edition. Public Health Infobase. Ottawa (ON): Public Health Agency of Canada, 2023.

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