WHO warns of stalled progress on adolescent physical activity over 15 years

One in four adolescents worldwide reported not getting at least 60 minutes of physical activity on any day in the previous week, according to new global estimates released by the World Health Organization (WHO) on Wednesday. That figure represents some 240 million young people aged 11 to 17 who reported not completing at least 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity on a single day. On average, adolescents reported being active on just 2.7 days a week, and only 14 per cent reported being active on all seven. The findings signal a lack of global progress over the past 15 years. Levels of physical activity among adolescents have remained virtually unchanged since 2010.

The WHO report, A generation missing out: Global trends in adolescent physical activity, 2010-2025, found that 86 per cent of adolescents reported fewer than seven active days in 2025. That figure has not shifted since 2010. The analysis draws on 389 population-based surveys from 140 countries and territories, involving more than 3.2 million adolescents. Physical inactivity is a major risk factor for heart disease, type 2 diabetes and some cancers. Helping young people develop active habits early in life is therefore considered critical.

No country is on track to meet the global target of a 15 per cent relative reduction in physical inactivity by 2030. Without accelerated action, adolescent inactivity is projected to remain largely unchanged for the rest of the decade, the report warns. Stark differences emerged between countries, with just 4 per cent of adolescents in some reporting no active days, while in others the figure exceeded 40 per cent. The gender gap also remains strikingly persistent. Some 28 per cent of girls reported no active days, compared with 22 per cent of boys.

Only 11 per cent of girls reported being active every day, compared with 17 per cent of boys. Girls were less active than boys in almost every country and every WHO region. “For 15 years, the world has made almost no progress in getting young people moving, and girls are being left furthest behind,” said WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. “The answer is not to tell adolescents to try harder. It is to build schools, streets and communities where moving, playing and being active is safe, easy and normal.”

WHO said there is no single explanation for the lack of progress. Transport patterns, access to safe public spaces, opportunities for safe walking and cycling, school environments, affordability, social norms and increasingly screen-based lifestyles can all shape adolescents’ opportunities to be active. The agency called for stronger action across the education, transport, urban planning, sport and health sectors. It also urged efforts to tackle the barriers faced by girls, including promoting physical activity in schools and investing in safe walking and cycling routes. Without such measures, WHO cautions, a generation risks missing out on the benefits of an active life.