Are Your Kids Spending TOO Much Time in Front of A Screen?

Are Your Kids Spending TOO Much Time in Front of A Screen?

Sedentary lifestyles becoming an epidemic among children

Are you finding that your child is spending too much time on the computer or in front of the television? Well, statistics would agree. According to the “PHIT America campaign” about 10 million children lead totally sedentary lifestyles and 33 million are not active enough according to health standards.

Regrettably, due to budget cuts in schools the opportunities for physical activity are often lacking. The old notion of “recess” might also be changing as students are not being allowed to go outside during their lunch hour for safety reasons. It may seem like trying to keep your kids active is becoming a task.

Due to this inactive lifestyles developing among our children, the United States is #1 in the world for childhood obesity problems. Statistics show that 74.5% of America’s children are either overweight or obese. Keeping our children active is very important. It helps them build strong bones and muscles, helps them with weight control and prevents them from developing diseases such as obesity, high blood pressure and type II diabetes that are common effects of sedentary lifestyles and promotes better sleep. Studies also prove that kids who are physically active perform better academically, are more alert and develop better self-esteem. A study done by the Journal of School Health found a significant relationship between students’ academic achievement and physical fitness. The odds of passing both standardized math and English tests increased as the number of fitness tests passed increased, even when controlling for gender, race/ethnicity, and socio-economic status.

According to the National Association for Sports and Physical Education children should be engaging in one or more hours of physical activity daily. Parents should be helping and overseeing that their children are participating in age-appropriate activities. Parents should be advocates of physical activity and allocating time for daily physical activity. Even though we live seemingly very busy lives statistics found by the Kaiser Family Foundation show that children on average watch about 4.5 hours of television daily and the average kid spends 7 hours on all screen media combined (TV, videos, and DVDs, computer time outside of schoolwork, and video games). Parents should try to encourage their kids to spend fewer hours in front of the screen and redirect that time into some sort of physical activity.

For more information you can contact Physical Solutions.