Physical Fitness of College Students in China: Evidence Mapping and Gap Analysis through a Scoping Review
Physical Fitness of Chinese College Students
Abstract
The physical fitness of Chinese college students has always been a key concern of the Government of China, especially due to the consistent decline in recent years, prompting an urgent need for affirmative actions to mitigate this situation. Thus, this scoping review aims to systematically appraise existing evidence regarding the current physical fitness status of college students in China. A systematic search was conducted on the physical fitness of Chinese college students in three databases (PudMed, Scopus and WoS), including 34 articles that evaluated one or more health-related physical fitness components to summarise the current physical fitness status among Chinese college students. Existing research indicates that the physical fitness status of Chinese college students is relatively poor, such as college students’ body mass index falls within the normal range, however, normal weight obesity (NWO) is prevalent. Students with NWO show excessive body fat percentage and insufficient skeletal muscle mass, reflecting the condition of “normal weight but high body fat and low muscle mass”. Most students exhibit cardiorespiratory fitness at a passing level, with relatively few reaching the excellent standard, and a certain proportion remaining below the passing threshold. According to all the 34 articles, eight major factors influence the physical fitness of college students, with lack of exercise identified as the primary factor. Current research on health-related physical fitness among Chinese college students remains limited. Future studies should improve methodological rigor, data timeliness and research depth to provide more robust scientific evidence for policy development and practical interventions.
Keywords :
College student; Chinese; physical fitness,
Abstrak
Kecergasan fizikal dalam kalangan pelajar kolej di China sentiasa menjadi perhatian utama pihak kerajaan China. Dalam beberapa tahun kebelakangan ini, tahap kecergasan fizikal pelajar kolej di China menunjukkan penurunan yang berterusan. Keadaan ini memerlukan tindakan afirmatif yang segera untuk menanganinya. Oleh itu, ulasan skop ini bertujuan untuk menilai secara sistematik bukti sedia ada berkaitan status kecergasan fizikal pelajar kolej di China pada masa kini. Carian sistematik telah dijalankan dalam tiga pangkalan data utama berkaitan kecergasan fizikal pelajar kolej di China, melibatkan satu atau lebih komponen kecergasan fizikal berkaitan kesihatan, bagi merumuskan tahap kecergasan fizikal semasa mereka. Sebanyak 34 artikel telah dimasukkan dalam ulasan ini. Kajian terdahulu menunjukkan bahawa tahap kecergasan fizikal mahasiswa di China masih kurang memuaskan. Walaupun indeks jisim badan kebanyakan mahasiswa berada dalam julat normal, obesiti berat badan normal (normal-weight obesity, NWO) masih berleluasa. Mahasiswa dengan NWO mempunyai peratus lemak badan yang tinggi serta jisim otot rangka yang rendah, iaitu keadaan “berat badan normal tetapi lemak badan tinggi dan jisim otot rendah”. Selain itu, kecergasan kardiorespiratori majoriti mahasiswa hanya berada pada tahap lulus, manakala hanya sebilangan kecil mencapai tahap cemerlang dan sebahagian masih gagal memenuhi piawaian minimum. Dapatan daripada kajian ini boleh dijadikan sebagai amaran kepada pihak berkuasa yang berkaitan. Tindakan afirmatif pada masa hadapan harus mengambil kira faktor-faktor berkemungkinan yang telah dikenal pasti dalam kajian ini. Dapatan ini juga menjadi asas penting bagi penyelidikan berkaitan pada masa hadapan.
Kata Kunci :
China; kecergasan fizikal; pelajar kolej,
Correspondance Address
*Correspondence: arimifitri@ukm.edu.my
