Exercise to Fight Childhood Obesity | Childhood Obesity Prevention

Raise a Smarter, Healthier Child
America?s fight against childhood obesity starts in your own home

EXERCISE MAKES YOUR CHILD SMARTER

The fitter children are, the better their brains work. That?s hard science from researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, who tested elementary-school students.

Physically fit kids had greater P3 amplitude, a measurement of brain activity related to memory and focus, and faster P3 latency, meaning they were able to process information faster. ?Parts of your brain don?t develop until the late teenage years,? says Charles H. Hillman, Ph.D., the study?s lead author. ?These data show that those who are fit are better able to use what they have.?

The number of students taking phys ed fell 30 percent in the past 10 years. Read the Men?s Health special report on The 7 Ways to Reform America?s Physcial Education

Elementary-school students may have the most to gain from physical education. In a review of 44 studies examining the relation-ship between physical activity and cognition in children of varying ages, researchers at Arizona State University found that the youngest kids (grades one through five) improved cognitive development the most, followed by middle-school students.

The California Department of Education found that the fittest students in the state scored best on academic tests. For instance, the average reading score of students who achieved one of six goals on the statewide fitness evaluation was 38; students who achieved all six fitness goals averaged a reading score of 52.

At Arrowhead High School, organized exercise helped Corey Wise organize his schoolwork. ?I started taking as much time with my homework as I did with my workout,? he says. Class became fun, and it showed in his grades. Your child may benefit from planned activity, too.

3 WAYS TO HELP YOUR KIDS EAT BETTER

Promise Academy, a charter school in Harlem, New York, closed its doors to vending machines and food brought in from outside. It serves only healthy food. Until your school does the same, it?s up to you to take control. Use these simple strategies to help your kids eat healthfully.

1. Enroll in a cooking class

And involve the kids. Children who learn about cooking learn about food. ?Cooking classes open your mind to a variety of different ways to prepare healthy food,? says Andrew Benson, head chef at Promise Academy. Benson offers a cooking class for parents and students; the children aren?t the only ones who develop healthy habits. ?Parents become interested in learning how to change their diets and their lives,? he says. Go to cookingschools.com to find a class near you.

2. Make friends with a farmer

?If you go to a farmers? market, they?ll usually give advice on how to prepare the foods,? says Benson. Fresher food is more nutritious food. And the closer a child is to the source of food (visit a farm if you can), the more interested he or she will be in nutrition. That?s crucial ? because even children who consume excess calories have nutrient deficiencies. Canadian researchers found that 87 percent of kids don?t get enough vitamin E, 28 percent lack magnesium, and 45 percent miss out on vitamin D. And a study in Pediatrics found that more than 60 percent of kids are calcium deficient, which, along with a lack of exercise, may have caused a rise in bone fractures.

3. No more soda

Stock up on milk and bottled water (if your tap water doesn?t taste good). Kids get more than 50 percent of their beverages at home. When researchers at Children?s Hospital Boston sent bottled water to families to replace their sugary drinks, kids lost about a pound a month. And a study in the journal Pediatrics found that overweight preschool children are twice as likely to remain overweight if they drink sugar-sweetened beverages. Note that 100 percent juice is okay ? it supplies fiber and key nutrients.

BY THE NUMBERS

29: Percentage of kids who take no physical-education class at all

8: Percentage of schools that meet nationally recommended exercise requirements

45: Percentage of kids who are overweight or obese

Source: http://www.childhoodobesitydeerpark.com/?p=472

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