It is widely proven that being physically active and avoiding sedentary behaviour help to improve adolescents’ well-being and keep them in better health in general. We aimed to investigate the relationship between modes of transport to school and subjective complaints among schoolchildren. Analyses were based on the HBSC (Health Behaviour in School-aged Children) surveys conducted in 2017/18 in nine countries (N = 55,607; mean age 13.43 ± 1.64 yrs.). The main outcome showed that health complaints consisted of somatic and psychological complaints. Transport to school was characterized by mode of getting there (walking, biking, or another passive mode). A total of 46.1% of students walked and 7.3% cycled to school; 46.6% commuted by passive means. Biking to school was more frequent in Denmark (37.9%), Norway (26.5%), and Germany (26.6%). The multivariate generalized linear model adjusted for age, gender, country, and school proximity showed that biking to school is protective against reports of health complaints. The beta parameters were equal to −0.498 (p < 0.001) for the general HBSC-SCL index, −0.208 (p < 0.001) for the somatic complaint index, and −0.285 (p < 0.001) for the psychological complaints index. Young people who actively commute to school are less likely to report health complaints, especially psychological symptoms.

To promote active commuting to and from school, it is pertinent to understand the motivational factors that influence the choice of this form of transportation. Translation, cultural adaptation and analysis of the factor structure as well as psychometric properties of the Basic Psychological Needs and Satisfaction in Active Commuting to and from School (BPNS-ACS) scale among Polish students and examination of the distribution of the scale scores according to gender, mode of commuting to and from school and the frequency of using bicycle for this purpose. Data from 475 Polish students aged 11-18, including 53.9% of girls were analysed. The Confirmatory Factor Analysis of the Polish version of the BPNS-ACS, U Mann-Whitney and Kruskal Wallis H tests were performed. The BPNS-ACS consists of 12 items forming three dimensions: autonomy, competence and relatedness need satisfaction. The scale has acceptable psychometric properties: χ2(51)=195.424 (p ˂ 0.001); χ2/df=3.832; CFI=0.944, TLI=0.927, RMSEA=0.077 (90%CI 0.066-0.089), AIC=249.424, BIC=361.833, GFI=0.937, AGFI=0.904. BPNC-ACS scores on factors corresponding to the three basic psychological needs differ based on gender, mode of commuting to and from school and the frequency of cycling to or from school. Further exploration of the function of basic psychological needs in active commuting to and from school among Polish adolescents may be conducted using an adapted version of the BPNS-ACS scale.

The UN has recognised well-being as a main goal of The Global Strategy for Women's, Children's and Adolescents' Health (2016-2030). The aim was to identify the areas of mental health that are the most significant to teenagers. The mixed-method approach was applied. Quantitative research included adolescents aged 11-15 years (6,026 in Portugal; 4,545 in Poland). HBSC study results (2013/2014) were analysed in terms of the following variables: self-rated health, life satisfaction (Cantril Ladder, KIDSCREEN-10 Index), and psychosomatic complaints (SCL scale). Focus workshops took place in 2018, with 72 teenagers aged 14 to 16. 16.6% of the Polish participants and 12.7% of the Portuguese participants were concerned about their health. Polish participants were less satisfied with their life [KIDSCREEN score: 25.48 for Poland (SD=6.39), and 29.96 (SD=6.03) for Portugal]. Both nations associated mental health (MH) with the family setting and relationships with friends. An additional association among Portuguese teenagers involved social issues, whereas Polish adolescents were more focussed on relationships with various people in their environment, as well as on experiencing issues at school and in the family. Adolescent MH is determined by stress, environmental pressure and high expectations. The viewpoints of adolescents are the most valuable source of knowledge for specialists, researchers and youth institutions, who can benefit greatly from taking advantage of this resource.