Socioeconomic inequalities in eating habits have a profound impact on the health of adolescents. The aim of the present study was to evaluate socioeconomic disparities in the eating habits of Czech adolescents and to compare their change between 2002 and 2014. The data from the Czech Health Behavior in School-aged Children (HBSC) study conducted in 2002 and 2014 was utilized. The Family Affluence Scale (FAS) was used to assess socioeconomic disparities. Higher odds of daily consumption of fruit (2002: OR = 1.67; 2014: OR = 1.70, p < 0.001) and vegetables (2002: OR = 1.54; 2014: OR = 1.48, p < 0.001) were associated with high FAS in both genders. Adolescents with higher FAS were less likely to consume sweets (2002: OR = 0.72, p < 0.05) and more likely to eat breakfast on weekdays (2014: OR = 1.19, p < 0.05). In 2002 and 2014, the data showed lower odds of daily consumption of soft drinks (Low: OR = 0.47; Medium: OR = 0.43; High: OR = 0.41, p < 0.001), fruit (Low: OR = 0.73; Medium: OR = 0.74, p < 0.001; High: OR = 0.75, p < 0.05), sweets (Low: OR = 0.71; Medium: OR = 0.79, p < 0.001) and breakfast on weekends (High: OR = 0.70, p < 0.05), and a higher likelihood of eating breakfast on weekdays (Low: OR = 1.26, p < 0.01; Medium: OR = 1.13, p < 0.05). These findings play an important role in future public measures to improve dietary habits and decrease social inequalities in youth.

Many children skip breakfast, consume soft drinks/sweets and do not eat the recommended amounts of fruit and vegetables. Poor eating habits in children tend to be carried over into adulthood. The changes in eating behaviours of Czech 11-, 13- and 15-year-old children were examined by frequency of breakfast (on weekdays and weekends), fruit, vegetable, sweet and soft drink consumption using data obtained from the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) surveys in 2002, 2006, 2010 and 2014. Logistic regression was used to analyze changes in eating behaviours. The findings showed a significant increase (only in girls, p ≤ 0.001) in prevalence of breakfast consumption (on weekdays) and a decrease in daily consumption of soft drinks (in boys and girls, p ≤ 0.001), sweets (in boys and girls, p ≤ 0.01) and fruit (in boys, p ≤ 0.01; in girls, p ≤ 0.001) between 2002 and 2014. Daily vegetable and breakfast on weekends consumption remained statistically unchanged over time. More frequent daily fruit, vegetable and breakfast (on weekends) consumption was reported by girls and younger children, whereas daily soft drink intake was more prevalent in boys and older children. There is a need for re-evaluation of current policies and new initiatives to improve the eating habits of Czech children.

Background: The main objective of the study is to analyse the changes in the prevalence of obesity among Czech adolescents between 2002 and 2018 with regard to the socioeconomic status (SES) of adolescents’ families and to find SES-separated correlates of adolescents’ obesity in 2018.Methods: A nationally representative sample of 29,879 adolescents (49.6% of them boys) aged 10.5–16.5 years was drawn from the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children cross-sectional, self-reported questionnaire surveys conducted in 2002, 2006, 2010, 2014, and 2018 in Czechia. Chi-square (χ²) tests were performed to assess the changes in the prevalence of obesity in both genders and all SES categories of adolescents between 2002 and 2018, and SES category-related differences in the prevalence of obesity in 2018 separately for boys and girls. A series of multiple stepwise logistic regression (backward elimination) analyses were used to reveal obesity correlates separately for SES categories of adolescents.Results: Across the quadrennial surveys from 2002 to 2018, we observed a clear increase in the prevalence of obesity in all SES categories of adolescents, which was most striking (p < 0.05) in adolescents with low SES (boys: + 7.5% points (p.p.); girls + 2.4 p.p.). When all the survey cycles were compared, the highest prevalence of obesity was evident in the low-SES adolescents in 2018, both in girls (5.1%) and boys (12.0%). Regardless of the adolescent SES category, the lower odds of obesity were significantly (p < 0.05) associated with regular vigorous physical activity (PA), participation in organized sport, and daily consumption of sweets. In addition, at least 60 min of moderate-to-vigorous PA significantly reduced the odds of obesity in adolescents of low and high SES categories.Conclusions: An unreasonable increase in the prevalence of obesity in adolescents with low SES highlights the need to prevent obesity in adolescents with a low-SES background. Additionally, significantly higher odds of obesity in 11- and 13-year-old adolescents from low-SES families, compared with their peers aged 15, indicated an expectable rise in obesity in older low-SES adolescents in the near future.

Uncovering the influences of parents' behaviour on their children's physical activity provides an insight into the lifestyle of families and development of effective family-based interventions. The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between parents' behaviour (step count (SC) and screen time (ST)) and children's SC on weekdays and at weekends. The participants (388 parents aged 35-45 and their 485 children aged 9-12) were randomly recruited from 21 Czech government funded primary schools. The participants recorded SC and ST duration for seven consecutive days (≥ 10 h/day) during April-May and September-October 2013. The associations between parents' behaviour (SC and ST) and children's SC were estimated using general linear regression separately for weekdays and weekends. Each 1,000 SC increase in mothers' (fathers') SC/weekday was associated with an extra 261 SC/day in their daughters and 413 (244) SC/day in their sons. Each 1,000 SC increase in mothers' (fathers') SC/weekend day was associated with an extra 523 (386) SC/day in their daughters and 508 (435) SC/day in their sons. A reduction in mothers' ST by 30 minutes per weekend day was associated with an extra 494 SC/day in their daughters and 467 SC/day in their sons. This study reveals a quantifiable relationship between parent-child SC/day and mothers' ST and children's SC at weekends. Weekend days are more suitable for the implementation of family-based interventions.

Parent–child patterns in objectively measured movement behaviours were the highlight of this study. A total of 381 families (337 mothers, 256 fathers, 190 daughters, and 191 sons) from 36 randomly selected schools and kindergartens provided valid accelerometer data. Sedentary behaviour and physical activity (PA) were assessed using ActiGraph accelerometers. Spearman’s rho was used to evaluate parent–child associations, while logistic regression analysis (the backward LR method) was used to recognize factors related to children’s achievement of PA recommendations. Results indicated that girls engaged more in light PA, while boys showed higher levels of moderate and vigorous PA. Mothers spent less time sitting and more time in light PA compared to fathers, resulting in higher total PA levels. Father–son pairs showed a stronger association in total PA than mother–son pairs. Children aged 6–10 years and those with mothers who engaged in more vigorous PA were more likely to meet PA recommendations compared to younger children and those with less active mothers.