Health · Fitness & Nutrition · 7 hrs ago
U.S. teenage boys’ outdoor time fell sharply after 2010
U.S. teenage boys spent less time outdoors, with their average falling from more than an hour a day around 2010 to under 40 minutes in 2023.
Girls’ outdoor time changed little, so by 2023 boys and girls spent similarly limited amounts of time outside.
Researchers examined 14,235 daily activity diaries from Americans aged 15 to 19, collected between 2003 and 2023.
The survey counted activities such as walking, cycling and outdoor sports, but did not count time at home or school when it could not establish whether teenagers were outside.
The decline among boys was steepest after the pandemic, though the survey data cannot show what caused it.
Heavy computer users were less likely to go outside, while teenagers who spent more time with friends were more likely to be outdoors and stayed out longer.
The study found these patterns alongside outdoor time, but does not establish that computer use or time with friends caused the changes.
U.S. boys aged 15 to 19 averaged more than 60 minutes outdoors a day around 2010, but less than 40 minutes by 2023.
Girls’ outdoor time changed little, and by 2023 boys and girls spent similarly limited amounts of time outside.
The decline in outdoor time across teenagers over the 20-year period was concentrated among boys.
The study found links between more computer leisure and less outdoor time, while more time with friends was linked to more outdoor time.
Researchers used 14,235 daily activity diaries from the American Time Use Survey, covering 2003 to 2023.
- Who
- U.S. teenagers aged 15 to 19, with the sharpest decline among boys.
- What
- Boys’ average outdoor time fell from more than 60 minutes a day around 2010 to under 40 minutes by 2023.
- When
- The analysis covered 2003 to 2023, with the sharpest decline for boys after 2010.
- Where
- The United States.
- Why
- The study did not establish what caused the decline.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Boys aged 15 to 19 averaged more than 60 minutes outdoors a day, while girls spent less time outside.
The year was left out of the trend lines because the survey was disrupted.
Boys averaged under 40 minutes outdoors a day, and boys’ and girls’ outdoor time was similar.
- Age group
- 15 to 19
- Boys’ outdoor time around 2010
- More than 60 minutes a day
- Boys’ outdoor time in 2023
- Under 40 minutes a day
- Survey diaries analysed
- 14,235
- Study period
- 2003 to 2023