Decreased activity levels to blame for child obesity
With growing concern about childhood obesity, it has never been more important to get children active and eating right.
According to a study by Lynn Roblin, published in 2007 on NRC Research Press’ website, the number of overweight and obese children in Canada has doubled and tripled, respectively, over the past 30 years.
Poor eating habits may be partly to blame, but so are decreasing activity levels, said Leah Yardley, who coordinates the Be Fit For Life centre at the University of Calgary.
“The critical hours between 3 and 6 p.m. are the major red-flagged hours,” said Yardley. “(That is) when kids are the most sedentary... and they are often sitting around, eating junk food.”
Yardley said to break that cycle, kids should engage in a minimum of 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous exercise, the kind that gets their heart rate up and makes them breathe harder, each day.
That minimum may be met by getting kids and youth, ages five to 17, involved in sports, or by simply having them walk, bike or play outside, according to Yardley.
“The important thing with kids is having them take part in unstructured activity,” said Yardley. “Just getting them out and back playing.”
That activity should start early, because children learn critical body skills, like kicking or throwing a ball, before they are old enough to attend kindergarten, she added.
Getting kids doing as many movements as possible, such as skipping, doing somersaults, balancing and climbing, can also help kids learn to love sports for life, according to Yardley.
So can showing them the joys of using their environment year-round by teaching them to skate, sled and swim.
Yardley added one of the barriers is the perception that being outside without parents is dangerous.
“That is a myth,” said Yardley. “We have become this culture that lives in fear. It is a huge problem, because you don’t see kids out riding their bikes or playing in the parks.”
Yardley encourages parents to find solutions, such as partnering with a trusted group of friends willing to take turns supervising or looking into different community programs that are active and engaging.
“You just need to poke your nose around and see what is available in your community,” she said.
Bobbi Thomas, preschool, children and youth programmer at Airdrie’s Genesis Place, said the facility has a number of drop-in and registered programs available for children and youth, ages 18 months to 17 years.
Options include gymnastics, drama, dance, swimming, yoga, and a plethora of sports programs such as basketball and soccer.
According to Thomas, the non-competitive programs are often short in duration and offer a number of benefits, such as the chance of building friendships with children from all across the city, discovering what activities you most enjoy and being involved in the community.
“I think it is really important that kids start being active at an early age, and find out what their bodies can do,” said Thomas. “It is really important to get out there and find out what works for your children.”
For Airdrie resident Kyla Desrosiers, getting her kids involved in physical activity is of utmost importance for a number of reasons such as to boost their confidence, enable them to build friendships and to allow them to develop a good attitude towards sports.
Her children Caysen, 3, and Cohen, 1, have been involved in a number of programs in the city, including gym activities and swimming. More recently, Desrosiers has signed Caysen up for soccer.
“I think it is very different for kids to try different things,” said Desrosiers. “The big thing is for health reasons. With all the technology out there, it is getting harder and harder to occupy them.”
Desrosiers has seen her oldest build his stamina and develop his confidence and skills and revels in the experience.
“It is fun to watch him learn,” she said.
Desrosiers said her circle of friends have much the same attitude towards activity as she does.
“Airdrie is such a strong community for kids and especially with the new options we are getting... there is a strong vibe that everyone wants their kids to be healthy and try new things,” she said.
For more information on Genesis Place’s fall programming, visit www.airdrie.ca/genesis_place/index.cfm
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