A Generation of Unfit Children
National statistics about the general health of America’s children are alarming. Our reliance on a fast food, high sugar, high fat diet combined with the popular "couch potato" syndrome of too much television and video game time has produced a generation of kids who don’t meet the minimum fitness requirements, who tire easily, and who don’t like the way they look and feel. What is worse is that parents often feel helpless to motivate their children to change the behaviors that put them at increased risk for serious and chronic health problems later in life.
Millions of children- the majority of them in middle and upper-middle class homes- face the prospect of serious diseases and shortened life spans because of sedentary living and poor nutrition. The situation appears to be worsening.
One third of youth aged 10 to 18 do not engage in sufficient physical activity to give them any aerobic or endurance benefit. Today’s children, beginning as young as age 6, weigh more and have considerably more body fat than did children twenty years ago. Obesity has increased by 54% among children aged 6-11, and by 39% among children aged 12 to 17. Obesity is defined as being 20% or more above the recommended weight for their age, sex and height.
By age 13, most boys and an even greater majority of girls are no longer participating in organized athletics, or any type of regular physical activity. Only 32% of children aged 6-17 meet minimum standards for cardiovascular fitness, flexibility, and abdominal and upper-body strength. A shocking 40% of children ages 5 to 8 have at least one heart disease risk factor. The factors include physical inactivity, obesity, high cholesterol, and high blood pressure.
Children by nature gravitate toward healthy activities and habits. In many cases, the forces of unwise nutrition, sedentary living, and lack of knowledge among parents have continued to deprive children of the very benefits they desire so deeply. Most kids are offered television and video games as leisure activities or after school options, rather than exercise or sports. The average 2 to 5 year old watches more than 22 hours of television per week. The typical 6 to 11 year old watches nearly 20 hours weekly.
All kids need vigorous exercise, consisting of at least three 30-minute workouts each week, such as steady running, cycling, or any other activity that promotes endurance. Only two-thirds of children participate at this level.
Everyone needs their own fitness routine. There are some factors that influence the athletic performance and the design of an effective kid fitness program. These include the child’s aerobic and endurance capacity, muscle strength and stamina, flexibility, percentage of body fat, and the degree of nutritional balance.
Girls in the adolescent years may drift away from competitive sports because they feel that the teams are being dominated by boys. Children may become bored because they aren’t on the first string and thus find themselves spending too much time on the bench. 90% of boys who participate in sports would rather play on a losing team than sit on the bench with a winning team.
Parents should become role models for their children. They should become involved with their own regular exercise program. Parents should teach their child the physical skills they know and try to develop additional skills to pass on to their child. Instead of emphasizing winning and hard work, parents should stress fun and fitness. Parents should also limit family television time, as well as smoking from the home. Most importantly parents should limit the use of fast foods, and should prepare fresh fruits and vegetables as snacks.
There are ten positive ways to turn a child on to fitness. Parents should: