Correlations between muscle strength and psychological health in Chinese adolescents: a cross-sectional analysis

• Published in: PeerJ (San Francisco, CA) Vol. 10; p. e14133
• Main Authors: Lu, Jinkui, Sun, Hao, Liu, Ningling, Qiu, Jianhua, Xia, Xiaofei
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States PeerJ. Ltd 06-10-2022; PeerJ, Inc; PeerJ Inc
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adolescents; Adults; Age; Analysis; Cardiovascular disease; Child development; China; Chinese adolescents; Correlational analysis; Cross-Sectional Studies; Emotional behavior; Female; Females; Gender; Humans; Kinesiology; Male; Males; Mental disorders; Mental Health; Muscle Strength; Pediatrics; Physical education; Physical Fitness; Psychological aspects; Psychological symptoms; Public Health; Questionnaires; Schools; Sex differences; Students; Surveys; Teenagers; Youth; China; Muscle strength; Correlational analysis; Mental health; Psychological symptoms; Chinese adolescents
• ISSN: 2167-8359; 2167-8359
• DOI: 10.7717/peerj.14133

Studies indicate that muscle strength is associated with good mental health. However, it remains unclear whether muscle strength is directly correlated with psychological symptoms in Chinese adolescents. Given the declining muscle strength and worrying mental health status of Chinese adolescents, the present study aimed to estimate the correlation between muscle strength and psychological symptoms as well as explore the gender differences in those correlations in Chinese adolescents.
From April to July 2018, a total of 14,344 Chinese adolescents from eight provinces were selected using a stratified clustered sampling method. Psychological symptoms were evaluated using the Multidimensional Sub-health Questionnaire of Adolescents (MSQA), a verified and validated questionnaire that assesses three psychological areas: emotional symptoms, behavioral symptoms, and social adaptation difficulties. Muscle strength was assessed using grip strength, sit-ups, and standing long jump. The Chi-square test was used to compare the detection rates of the different categories of psychological symptoms. A logistic regression analysis was used to analyze the correlations between muscle strength and psychological symptoms and explore the gender differences in those correlations in Chinese adolescents.
In general, the detection rate of psychological symptoms for Chinese adolescents was 21.39%. Males had a higher detection rate of psychological symptoms (22.12%) than females (20.66%,
< 0.05). Psychological symptoms were present in significantly fewer Chinese adolescents with a muscle strength index >P75 (19.26%) than among Chinese adolescents with a muscle strength index ≤P25 (23.00%) (χ
= 23.417,
< 0.01). Compared with females, the OR values for males in most groups were over one (OR = 1.04-1.43), indicating that males have a higher risk of psychological symptoms than females.
The psychological symptom detection rate of Chinese adolescents is correlated with muscle strength. Psychological symptoms were more correlated to muscle strength in males than in females. The significance of the present study lies in the important insights for integrated mental and physical fitness intervention strategies that promote muscle strength and psychological symptoms simultaneously.