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Children are Our Future
In the song, "The Greatest Love of All," the opening lyrics state that "children are our future - teach them well and let them lead the way." This song came to my mind as I noticed that Saturday, April 18th, is "National Healthy Kids Day," an annual national event sponsored by YMCA. It consists of a series of sporting and exercise events designed to encourage physical activities for children and their families.
The fact that children are the future is obvious; our children of today will be our leaders and decision makers of tomorrow. For this, we spend an abundance of time, money and effort teaching our children the cognitive skills that will help them to be better thinkers and planners. Yet, something has gone completely awry in our culture. We have overlooked the physical component of a child's well-being.
We've neglected the need for physical activities and proper nourishment. Physical education programs have been minimized or eliminated; public schools have closed off much-needed playing areas to the very communities supporting them; parents increasingly rely on fast food for children's meals, and computers for their activities.
Consequently, for the first time in our history as a nation, our children will live shorter lives than their predecessors. Just a few days ago, a friend showed me a startling statistic that clearly illustrates the problem. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, 20% of 4-year olds in the U.S. are "OBESE." This is preposterous! We have never had such a health crisis so early in life. Clearly, at this rate, future generations are destined for serious economic and social catastrophes.
This is not about baby fat, folks. We're talking about the shortened and sickened lives of our children. This is about premature diabetes, cancer and heart disease. In spite of our increasing levels of education, we've become increasingly ignorant of our need for healthy bodies; this leads to sicker minds and emotions.
The great news, however, is that we can reverse our downward spiral. We have the technology, the research, and the money to end this crisis - if we choose to. It's time to take action starting with introducing young children to physical activity. There is never an excuse for allowing a child to be sedentary. Also, it is unacceptable to feed children mal-nourishing foods on a regular basis. While fast foods may be cheaper initially, it will cost so much more money in the future in terms of treating ailments related to the resulting malnutrition.
To reverse our deadly trend, here are some basic suggestions, for starters:
- Educate children from early in life about healthful eating while introducing them to the joy of movement through physical activity.
- Help reintroduce physical education requirements for all children; advances have been made for phys ed program options.
- Support the ban of soft drinks from all schools - high schools as well as elementary schools.
- Support the ban of fast foods in and near schools.
- Avoid relying on foods - especially junk (cakes, ice cream, chips, fast food, candy, etc.) - as a source of rewards or incentives. Instead, use activities as motivators (e.g. bike rides, hiking, visits to the local pool - even a day at a water park).
- Encourage public schools to reopen their athletic fields to the community.
By following these initial steps, we can begin to secure our future as a healthy, highly functional nation. Physical activity and proper nourishment will help our children to be physically, socially and emotionally healthier and it will help them develop stronger, sharper minds. As the aforementioned song says for our children, we can "Show them all the beauty they possess inside. Give them a sense of pride to make it easier" ... Easier to enjoy life, easier to be highly productive, and certainly easier to live a long, disease-free life.
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