Education Law

As children grow, activity levels decrease?

That is the unfortunate news Board Buzz saw in a New York Times article article last week. The article depicts a new National Institutes of Health (NIH) study that shows that, as children grow, their physical activity levels drop.

The study, published in the July 16 Journal of the American Medical Association, shows that young children spend quite a bit of time moving around. At age nine, for instance, they are active an average of three hours per day. But, as the teen years kick in, all of that energy dissipates: by the age of 15, daily physical activity drops to just 49 minutes on weekdays and about a half-hour on weekends. The study also reveals that age 13 seems to be when the decline begins and that, overall, boys tend to be more active than girls.

According to the 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, children and adolescents should engage in at least 60 minutes of physical activity on most, preferably all, days of the week.

The study did not measure reasons for the drop in activity levels, but highlighted some factors that may contribute to it such as: the facts that many neighborhoods don?t have safe biking and walking routes, and sports become more exclusive and competitive as children grow. In addition, schools often limit physical activity as children get older by eliminating recess and cutting physical education programs.

In the study?s report, researchers emphasize the ?need for program and policy action as early as possible at the family, community, school, health care, and governmental levels to address the problem of decreasing physical activity with increasing age.?

Board Buzz believes that physical activity is important at any age and particularly relevant to school-aged children as research has shown its benefits to mental and physical health, as well as to improved concentration and learning abilities. Schools play an important role in helping kids stay active. And, Board Buzz does not want to see the next research piece with the title above flip-flopped: ?As activity levels decrease, children grow??., not in height?., not in intellect?but rather in weight?

To learn more about the importance of physical activity for school-aged children, please visit NIH?s We Can site, which provides tips, evidence-based curricula, and other resources to help children and their families make better food choices, increase physical activity, and reduce recreational screen time. And, for help with program and policy development, don?t forget to visit NSBA?s School Health Programs at www.nsba.org/schoolhealth.

Full post as published by BoardBuzz: NSBA's Daily Weblog on July 21, 2008 (boomark / email).