Get serious about playtime
The loss of physical play fuels the obesity problem.
"For kids, free time used to mean playtime. They'd come home from
school, grab a snack and bolt out the door to run around with friends. In the summer,
they'd play all day.
But now, a lot of kids stay home and watch TV, play video games, go online or talk
on cell phones. All the while, they stuff themselves with goodies they don't burn
off in "free play."
Since the late 1970s, children's playtime has fallen 25 percent and their outdoor
activities have dropped 50 percent, says the Institute for Social Research at the
University of Michigan.
This is serious stuff.
Pediatricians say less free play and less physical education in school fuel childhood
obesity. Many parents seek to solve the problem by getting their children into organized
sports, but not all kids are good athletes. Some who are may suffer physically and
mentally from an overemphasis on competition and winning.
No, pediatricians say, play is the way. It may seem frivolous, but playing "is an
essential activity for a kid to grow up," says Gil Fuld, M.D., an American Academy
of Pediatrics spokesman.
"Kids need to be able to play in the woods, play in the dirt," says Dr. Fuld, who
practices in New Hampshire. But there's a problem. Parents' media-fanned fear of
sexual predators and other dangers makes many unwilling to let their kids out of
sight. "There's always an adult nearby," he says, and that can put a damper on playtime.
That fear won't go away, Dr. Fuld says - even though there's no proof that the danger
is greater now than in the past. We have to take parents' concerns into account,
he says, but we must find solutions that don't hold back "kids' ability to grow
and experience freedom."
Here's How to Get Kids Moving:
• Find fun things kids can do in the community, such as swimming
at municipal pools.
• Take turns with other parents watching your kids playing casual games such as
kickball. Keep a low profile.
• Set up or tap into unstructured playtime at the local YMCA or at school.
• Check to see if there are "free-play" programs run by local recreation departments,
colleges or health clubs.
• Find or set up unstructured play activities as early as preschool.
• Create backyard play areas.
• Don't just talk the talk, walk the walk. Active parents tend to have active children.