Study finds China's least active children live in Beijing

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A recent report stated that children in Beijing are the most sedentary in the country, while kids in southwest China's Chongqing are the most active.

Children in Chongqing were recorded taking more than 6,000 walking steps a day on average, the highest number among all Chinese cities, while Beijing, the capital, came in at the bottom of the list, with its children's daily steps as low as 3,500, according to chinanews.com, which cites a report released by 360 Kids Guard, a smart watch brand for kids in China.

Graph shows children's activity level by city/China Daily Photo

Chongqing was followed by Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, with 5,900 steps, and Chengdu, Sichuan province, with 4,900.

Shanghai is close to Beijing on the lower end of the ranking, with its kids keeping a daily track of just 3,540 steps. Suzhou, in Jiangsu Province, came in at third lowest, with 3,580 steps.

A lack of exercise increases children's health risks and can jeopardize their well-being throughout their lives. Physical activity is also crucial to their cognitive development and academic success.

A kid is playing video games at a train station in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province on January 13, 2017./CFP Photo

Experts say environmental influences are associated with physical activity among children in different cities as well.

"The number of steps for Chongqing children almost doubled that of Beijing kids, partly because of the capital's inconvenient traffic and smoggy air," said Pei Zhiyong, an expert on teenagers’ network security education.

The brand 360 Kids Guard reportedly sold more than 1.8 million smart watches across China in 2016 as well.

(Source: China Daily)