OVERWEIGHT secondary students are more likely to come from lower socioeconomic backgrounds, research has revealed.

Research published today in the Medical Journal of Australia reveals that  that out of 12,188 students, just under a quarter were either overweight (18 per cent) or obese (5 per cent).

Male students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds were more likely to be overweight, and typically spent more time using electronic media and slept for a shorter duration.

Associate Professor Helen Skouteris from Deakin University School of Psychology and her co-authors have called for a review into guidance on the optimal sleep and physical activity for children of different ages.

"We argue that age groupings are needed because toddlers and preschoolers, children and adolescents are physiologically and developmentally different from each other,'' she said.

"These developmental differences need to inform age-specific recommendations.''