Preschoolers, 89% Inactive...
Obesity is on the rise, especially among children. So getting kids to run around is a good idea, but a new study in Child Development reveals many children in preschool spend only 8% of their day involved light physical activity and just 3% doing moderate to vigorous physical activity, but the rest of the day, 89%, is spent sedentary and teachers were unlikely to encourage kids to be more physically active. But placing toys outside in open spaces made kids more likely to get moving; from EurekAlert!
No doubt, this isn’t helping to lessen the obesity trend and to make matters worse. Pediatricians are failing to diagnosis weight problems in children. In an earlier report, only 10% of children studied were given a weight-related diagnosis. And many parents don’t even realize their kid is overweight.
In December, a study found that parents’ genetics are linked to a child’s risk of obesity, but social factors, like lifestyle choices, physical activity and meals, are just as important. Everyone, exercise!
Image credit: subewl
As I'm looking for a pre-school for my daughter now, I'm finding that most of the schools are more concerned about keeping the kids "in line" and avoiding having them get dirty. It's so sad. If they let them run around and be kids, they'd be so much healthier. One more example of how kids know what's good for them.