Can First Lady Michelle reduce childhood obesity in 1 generation? Well that's her plan as the President signs a memorandum on childhood obesity in the Oval Office today launching the Let's Move campaign.
Limiting television to tackle the development of sedentary lifestyles, smaller portion size, infusing fruits, vegetables and water into their daily diet and exercise are suggestions to help battle this nationwide epidemic. We personally saw a significant change in our daughter's body when we added gymnastics and tennis to her extracurricular activities which already included swimming and dance classes. The greatest benefit- she LOVES being physically active. You can always find her doing roundoffs and dancing around the house. The long term health benefits are numerous.
Data shows that 1 in 3 children are either over weight or obese. The number of overweight children ages 6 to 19 has tripled since 1970, according to a 2007 New England Journal of Medicine study. "We've seen the surge in obesity in this country is nothing short of a public health crisis, and it's threatening our children, it's threatening our families, and more importantly it's threatening the future of this nation," said First Lady Obama. "Higher rates of obesity are directly linked, as you've heard, to higher rates of chronic illnesses like heart disease and cancer and diabetes", she added.
Check out your neighborhood department of recreation for affordable programs to increase your child's level of physical activity. You never know what you might find from basketball and baseball clinics to ice skating lessons. Let your tax dollars work toward improving your family's health.
Watch the First Lady introduce the campaign tonight 2/9/10 on CNN's Larry King Live at 9pm EST. Need to gear up to battle childhood obesity in your home/community? Check out the links below for 7 stories on childhood obesity and an illustration of the physical complications of childhood obesity.
Here's a link to the First Lady's Let's Move website
ReplyDeletehttp://www.letsmove.gov/
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