Hong Kong study finds over 90% of pupils fail to meet WHO’s daily exercise guidelines, with academic pressure cited as a major factor. Photo: Elson LiA citywide study has found that more than 90 per cent of Hong Kong school pupils are failing to get at least 60 minutes of exercise a day as recommended by the World Health Organization.
The university study collected data on the physical activities of 1,476 primary school pupils and 1,929 secondary students. The results were released on Saturday.
“Overall, the exercise level of children in Hong Kong is very insufficient,” said Patrick Ip Pak-keung, a clinical professor at the University of Hong Kong’s paediatrics and adolescent medicine department.
The study, conducted by Ip’s department, gathered data using special monitoring bracelets that students wore for several weeks during the 2023-24 school year.
Researchers found that only 7.4 per cent of study participants managed to do a minimum of 60 minutes of medium- to vigorous-intensity physical activity every day, the WHO’s benchmark for those aged five to 17.
The figure stood at 7.9 per cent in the previous school year.
A breakdown of the latest data also showed 3.5 per cent of secondary school students managed to meet the benchmark, up from the previous level of 2.6 per cent.
Ip, who led the study, said one of the major reasons behind the low figure was the heavy emphasis parents placed on children’s academic results.
Such attitudes meant youngsters were expected to instead attend tutorial classes and sharpen their academic abilities, he said.
“Parents will lack the chance to take part in high-quality parent-child activities with their children, especially where they can exercise together in school or at home,” he said.
Secretary for Education Christine Choi Yuk-lin said her bureau had always attached great importance to the holistic development of students and on helping them build a healthy lifestyle.
She said authorities had also encouraged students to follow the WHO’s physical activity recommendations and they had also added physical education to subjects evaluated as part of secondary school allocation system in the 2026-27 academic year.
The study also found differences in the amount of physical activity done by boys and girls, most obviously among primary school pupils.
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The data showed that 19.6 per cent of primary school boys achieved the benchmark, compared with only 6.1 per cent of girls.
Ip also pointed to a drop in the overall fitness levels of students, citing data gathered from schools taking part in the School Physical Fitness Award Scheme.
The academic said a 12-year-old boy in 2015-16 typically had a grip strength of 19.5kg (42.9lbs), compared with 18.4kg in 2023-24.
The professor also noted a drop in students’ elasticity levels. A 12-year-old boy in 2007-08 would be able to reach forward by 27.4cm (10.8 inches) when sitting up, compared with 23cm in 2023-24, he said.
Sam Wong Wing-sum is the executive director of the Physical Fitness Association of Hong Kong, China, whose organisation partners with the university to promote physical fitness at schools. He called for more measures to address the problem.
He said it was necessary to develop children’s interest in physical activities from a young age and that schools should become more sports-friendly.
“Can every child take advantage and cherish the opportunities to have extracurricular or after-school activities? Do the environment and facilities of schools encourage children to become more active? Are there enough facilities for physical activities?” he asked. “These are all ways to improve sports friendliness.”
Lobo Louie Hung-tak, associate head of the Education University of Hong Kong’s health and physical education department, said the study results were an alarm call on students’ well-being.
“If everyone does not take care of the physique of students, it will be useless if Hong Kong students get countless awards in mathematics or other subjects,” he said.
Louie said he believed the main cause of the issue was that parents placed too much emphasis on their children’s academics, while ignoring the importance of their physical health.
“Parents must give their children the opportunity and space for them to be active,” he said. “This is something that Hong Kong is really bad at, as we focus too much on academics.”
He said to change attitudes society needed to have both facilities and policies in place.
The expert pointed to the soon-to-open Kai Tak Sports Park as an example of facilities that could encourage the public to go out and engage in physical activity. He said he hoped education policy could be adjusted to reflect the value of exercise and parents could realise its importance.