One in four adolescents meet physical-activity guidelines

Is your teen a couch potato?  Only 25% of those aged 12-14 are getting a minimum of 60 minutes of exercise per day, new research shows.  The problem is that we take our attitude toward fitness into adulthood, so it’s important to start when you’re young.

Tala Fakhouri, an epidemiologist with the National Center for Health Statistics, also points out that we tend to be less physically active as we get older, as her previous research found that nearly three in four children aged 6-11 hit the target for physical-activity guidelines.  Some believe the decline in physical activity may be due to the busy schedules and increasing academic pressure that young people face.  

But the teenage years are a critical time for developing athletic abilities and excelling in sports, says Michael Bergeron, executive director of the National Youth Sports Health & Safety Institute. Bergeron explains, “Some kids don’t make the school or travel teams in sports they have played for years.  That perception of being left behind may prompt a number of kids to step away from a sport.  The lack of quality PE in high school and earlier grades, along with less of an emphasis on and limited time and places for safe, free play, further limits opportunities for our youth to experience and learn to enjoy sports and physical activity.”  

Not to mention, adolescents who are physically active tend to be healthier and have more lean muscle and stronger bones, Fakhouri says.  Bergeron advises parents to introduce their children to a variety of physical activities and sports:  “Kids like to have fun.  They like to participate.  A diversified athletic experience early on will give kids the tools and capacity to be functionally and regularly active in a variety of ways, with great dividends for the rest of their lives.”

KSDK.com, 1/8/14