The topic of obesity is very hot today, but the real story is in the lack of physical activity of the nation’s children, which may be a far greater health problem. Last week, I talked about Medicare coverage for weight loss counseling for our seniors, but our clubs should be proactive in finding fitness solutions for our youth before they become sedentary adults.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, physical activity is their Number One problem, not obesity. This is especially true because the majority of school systems do not have physical education policies or recess policies at all, nor do they have policies and practices pertaining to nutrition. The National Association of Sports and Physical Education has set standards that schoolchildren participate in 150 minutes of physical education a week, but few school districts follow that. That is pretty shocking.
The typical reasons given for abandoning physical education and/or recess are that there are only so many hours in the school day, and with budget cuts and increased pressure to perform higher on test scores, most schools decide that physical activity is not critical.
Those of us in health and fitness are aware of the strong connection between physical activity and improved performance in our jobs and in our overall state of mind. Most of us feel better throughout the day as a result of exercise, so certainly this would be true for schoolchildren who often need an outlet for healthy energy. In fact, there have been studies that show that there is a positive relationship between physical activity and academic achievement. So what don’t the schools get?
Well, they definitely don’t get enough money, so where money is the biggest problem, some school systems have actually resorted to fundraising and proposing alternative taxes, such as on sugary beverages, to bring athletic programs back to schools. I suggest that we in the fitness industry have another opportunity to step up and bridge a gap.
Some clubs already have youth programs that include reaching out to area schools. The recommendation for children is that they should have at least one hour of heart-pumping activity a day. If the schools are not providing that, then many parents would be happy to have an option for their kids at a health and fitness facility where a comprehensive approach to healthy nutrition and rigorous activity after school and on weekends could be promoted.
While the same principle holds true for children as adults that all the exercise in the world won’t make up for a diet heavy in fats, sugars and empty calorie carbs, we must at least get involved in finding solutions for obesity in our children.
Judith Samuels, M.A. is a certified nutrition and wellness consultant and master personal trainer at Sport&Health Clubs in the Washington D.C. Metro Area. She can be reached via e-mail at judi@judisamuels.com.
