LET'S GET PHYSICAL

Posted by: Cathy Arnst on October 23

Kids today have every reason to stay indoors: video games, cable TV, tons of homework, a lack of sidewalks—no wonder one in three U.S. children ages 6-19 are overweight (and 10% of kids age 2-5). Half of those kids, 17%, are already obese, up from 11% just 10 years ago.

Dell Computer founder Michael Dell and his wife, Susan, are trying to do something about all this by funding research into the obesity crisis. Part of their money supports the research of Dr. Bill Kohl, an expert on physical activity who just joined the faculty of the University of Texas at Austin’s Michael & Susan Dell Center for Advancement of Healthy Living. Kohl had previously worked for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Division of Physical Activity and Nutrition, where he developed a national agenda for promoting physical activity. I spoke with him recently to find out how parents can help their children stay healthy:

Question) So what can be done about the obesity crisis facing U.S. children?

Dr. Kohl) I think it is a problem that extends beyond obesity. I like to couch it as a physical inactivity crisis. We’ve engineered physical activity out of our daily lives. The opportunities for children to be active are being replaced by inactive pursuits.

Q) So how do we engineer activity back in?

Kohl) I think we start with parents being the role model. Every study shows that active parents means active kids. The standard recommendation for optimal health is 60 minutes a day of physical activity. You’re probably not going to get that all in at one time but you can take a multi-pronged approach.

Then, one of the key things parents can do is take a look at the phys ed (PE) class at their children’s school. PE should be active, it should be fun. Too many times PE is used for health education only, and the kids aren’t active. A good PE class won’t solve all the problems but it’s a natural first place to start. Ask questions about your child’s program, and get involved in changing it if it needs changing.

Q) Why have so many schools eliminated or de-emphasized PE?

Kohl) Most states leave it up to the school districts, and they have so many other challenges, particularly to get standardized test scores up. So PE often gives way to classroom time. But there is no evidence that PE takes away from academic achievement. True, we can’t say physical activity makes kids smarter, but it certainly doesn’t hurt them.

Q) What are some other ways to get kids more active?

Kohl) It has to be fun. Kids are not little adults. They aren’t going to want to go running with their parents. Just have them play outside. Remember, video games are fun, and that’s the challenge. You have to make physical activity more fun. The idea is to instill physical activity while they are young so it becomes, not a chore, but a part of life.

There’s a huge walk-to-school effort that’s started up. In most suburbs the neighborhood schools are in walking distance. If you work, you could come up with a way to have one parent walk all the kids to and from school, and rotate it around. (Incidentally, October is International Walk to School Month. Go to the web site for information on this interesting new movement).

Q) What should communities be doing?

Kohl) The most successful intervention to reduce dental problems was adding fluoridation to the water. We have to figure out what the equivalent is for physical activity. We need to create an environment in which its much easier to be active. I can get anyone to exercise in a treadmill on a lab. Doing it in the real world is not an easy choice to make.

Why can’t we take advantage of the schools, use them as a hub? Why aren’t teachers in walking clubs, modeling behavior? The art dept. could make assignments where the images portrayed are kids being active.

Then there’s sports leagues, and if those are too difficult to get to or expensive there are low cost alternatives, like the YMCA.

Q) My 9 year old daughter is so active I can’t keep up with her. At what age do children lose interest in physical activity?

Kohl) There is good evidence that around ages 10-11-12 girls really drop off fast, for social and physical and psychological reasons. That’s a danger time that parents should be aware of. Boys drop off a little bit later. By the end of high school lots of kids are fairly inactive. Then, the next couple of years it becomes much easier to be sedentary than active. So the time to start is now. Rewards and incentives often seem to help.

Q) What if a child doesn’t like to be active, but is thin. Should parents be worried?

Kohl) The mistake people often fall into is assuming that if a child is thin they are healthy. It’s an easy mistake to make. Even in the absence of excess body fat physical inactivity is bad, particularly in kids. Physical activity when they are young lays down bone and strengthens the joints, We’re starting to see the emergence of acute health issues in children because of the lack of activity. The time to get them moving is now.

TrackBack URL for this entry: http://blogs.businessweek.com/mt/mt-tb.cgi/