Parents Must Help Fight Childhood Obesity

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Parents Must Help Fight Childhood Obesity
A recent survey from the British Heart Foundation (BHF) says that parents overestimate the amount of exercise their children actually do.

'Too many parents misjudge the amount of exercise their children do and underestimate the value of indoor play as a way of achieving the recommended amount of physical activity and developing their children's key skills,' says Janice Dunphy, Chair of the Play Providers Association PPA.

71% of nearly 1,000 parents polled thought their children were "active enough" but only 10% of their children said they do the recommended amount.
The survey showed that whilst the number of obese children has risen since the mid-1990s, there have been no major changes in children's physical activity levels over the past decade.

Dr Ian Campbell, of the National Obesity Forum, says: "Parents, carers and children should try and find ways of being active together, at home, at school and at play. In addition to parents being more involved we need to ensure local councils are aware of the need to provide greater opportunity for all children to be more active, with better, more affordable sports facilities and safer, cleaner, well-lit streets."

The PPA is already helping the Government get children more active through Play4Life, part of its Change4Life campaign, which is educating the nation, and especially children, about the benefits of Eating Well, Moving More and Living Longer.

December 1 2009

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