Physical Education and Obesity

Posted on June 11, 2009 in Latest News

Childhood obesity has been increasing rapidly, with the studies showing that about one-third of schoolchildren in U.S. are obese. One of the reasons for rising obesity rates can be attributed to lack of physical education in school. Instead of a compulsory physical education class, kids are made to concentrate more on academics – thereby neglecting the important aspect of physical fitness.

Physical Education Neglected:
Less than 10 percent of the public schools in US offer physical education classes. The number of physical education trainers are becoming fewer and fewer in schools. As a result, kids are more adept at academics, but they do not know the joy in participating in sports or playing with others.

The link between lack of physical education and obesity can be clearly seen. A Child when the/she goes home, is hooked on to video games or computers. The favorite hang out places for children are fast-food joints, where high-calorie food is served. Added to this the heavy advertising of foods such as sodas, chips for kids aggravates the problem of obesity.

Elementary students need about 150 minutes of physical activity every week, while middle school and high school students need 225 minutes of physical activity a week. Few schools have realized this and they have started encouraging physical education classes. However, most of them fall behind when it comes to offering healthy play time for kids.

To tackle the problem of lack of physical education and obesity epidemic, parents can :

Along with exercising, parents should make sure their kids have a healthy diet which includes plenty of fruits and vegetables. Although lack of physical education is hurting the kids, parents can minimize the impact by encouraging kids to be physically active

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