O uso frequente de smartphones e sua consequência na aptidão física dos policiais militares do 23º Batalhão de Polícia Militar da cidade de Curitiba

Abstract

The biggest change in population habits through the technological evolution results in changes in the physical activity levels of people. In fact, the use of smartphones has been one of the main vectors of this transition. The objective of this study was to analyze the frequency of the use of smartphones can influence the decrease or increase of physical activity practice in the Military Police of the 23rd Military Police Battalion of Paraná. To reach this goal, we used the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) – Short Version, to verify the level of physical activity. Other questionnaire was prepared to analyze the frequency of daily use of the smartphone. A total of 47 Military Police Officers working in the Cidade Industrial District of Curitiba took part in this study. They had an average age of 33.5 years and average BMI of 26.0 kg / m². The study involved 44 men and 3 women: 40% have completed higher education. 66% work in the operational service and 34% in the administrative service. Seventy two percent have an average of 6 -10 years of service. The survey revealed that 68% of the Military Police’s physical activity profile was considered ‘active’ or ‘very active’, 29% ‘irregularly active’ and only 2% were ‘sedentary’. Regarding the frequency of the participants who declare to use their smartphones on a daily basis device ‘frequently’, 43% said that do it for leisure, 28% for work, 11% for physical activity and only 9% for other activities. Leisure is the main use function. In general, the present work shows that the levels and frequency of use of smartphones in the Military Police of the 23rd Battalion has no significant impact on the level of physical activity. This outcome is explainable due to the difficulty in conducting a research related to the subject, which needs to refer to the numerous different functions and capabilities of the Military Police work, requiring multiple different types of analysis addressing from physical input, function and education level. The results put the use of the smartphone as a subject of future research in order to improve the understanding of the consequences of its use.