One
out of three American children is overweight,
a condition unacceptable to First Lady Michelle Obama, who recently launched
the first salvo in her campaign against childhood obesity. In response to her
concern, President Obama signed a memorandum on February 8, 2010, that created
a national task force to address the issue. Members consist of the major heads
of government agencies, and their charge is to define and implement ways to
reverse the worrisome trend.
While
the task force is convening, researchers suggest three actions parents can take
today to ensure that their child will maintain a normal weight and develop
healthy habits that will carry into adulthood. In a study
of 8,550 children, researchers led by Dr. Sarah Anderson
at Ohio State University
found that the children of parents who followed these three simple practices
were 40 percent more likely to achieve normal weight than other children were.
February
is National Parent Leadership Month. Here’s how parents can lead their kids in
becoming healthy and FIT:
F: Focus on eating meals together. The family that eats together becomes healthier together. Family
meals tend to be more nutritious and are more likely to include fruits,
vegetables and whole grains. And children who take part in family meals are
less likely to fill up on fast foods and sugary sodas. Aim for 5 or more nights
a week.
I: Institute a nightly routine for bedtime to ensure
that children get adequate rest. School-age children need 10 to 11 hours
of sleep a night. A survey in 2004 by the National Sleep
Foundation found that American school-age children were, on average, sleeping
less than 10
hours a night. This deficit can contribute to surplus pounds.
T: Turn off the television. Take control of and
limit all screen time (DVD, video, video game, computer and television use). In
one study,
children ages 8 to 18 averaged nearly six
hours a day of screen time. When limiting use, consider the age
of the child: no television viewing before age 2, no more than one to two hours
a day for preschool children and no more than two hours a day for school-age
children.
These
three practices will help your child avoid the discrimination and social embarrassment
of being overweight as well as future medical problems associated with surplus
pounds. As an added bonus, your child will perform better in school
and be less likely to get into trouble.
Pediatricians,
healthcare professionals and others who work with children, while concerned
that childhood obesity rates have tripled in the past 30 years, also assure us
that we can eliminate the scourge of childhood obesity. They agree with First
Lady Obama that the problem is “imminently solvable.” But to reverse the trend,
we’ll need to make these and other changes that enhance fitness. Government
intervention, national task forces and school programs are needed and
appreciated, but nothing is as powerful as parental leadership. Childhood obesity
can be reversed—one child at a time, one family at a time.
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