Lifestyle health behaviours of 11- to 16-year-old youth with physical disabilities

Health promotion strategies for youth with physical disabilities are needed to reduce their high risk of acquiring secondary disabilities in adulthood. Many secondary disabilities are associated with lifestyle habits and are potentially preventable. To determine their health promotion needs, the Health Behaviours in School-aged Children, a WHO Cross-national Study questionnaire, was administered to 101 youth with physical disabilities. Their responses were compared with youth in a Canadian national sample. In comparison with the national sample, youth with physical disabilities reported that they were equally healthy, but experienced higher frequency of symptoms of poor health such as headaches, stomachaches and backaches. With respect to lifestyle health behaviours they were less likely to smoke, drink alcohol and use marijuana than their counterparts in the national sample. Youth with physical disabilities reported less healthy diets, less exercise and more sedentary leisure activities. These findings support the need for health promotion strategies tailored to the particular pattern of risks for youth with physical disabilities.