There’s a new report that suggests many school-aged children are weighing just a little bit more at the end of the summer compared to their last day of the school year. And that’s not just because they are growing in width and length, but because they are also less active during the summer months, resulting in some added weight gain.
As a matter of fact, the number of students returning to school overweight has increased by a fifth, prompting many health professionals to be concerned. According to Britain’s The Sun, researchers looked at over 400 elementary-aged school children and found that their fitness levels have plummeted by a staggering 80 percent.
In other words, there are more kids spending time indoors in front of their electronic screens and tablets than children actually playing outdoors with their neighbours and peers. The study was conducted by a charity by the name of UK Active.
They followed 400 kids over a 13-month period and found that kids are the least active between the last day of the academic school year and the first day of the following school year. The researchers found that by July, about 20 percent of the children were either overweight or obese. By September, the number climbed to 24 percent.
UK Active Spokesperson Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson says that the key in getting kids to keeping kids both healthy and happy is for parents to pay attention to their lifestyles. She says that moms and dads should not only encourage their kids to be active or play outdoors but to also curb the amount of junk food they eat during the summer months.
If this weren’t enough, a poll conducted by British grocer Sainsbury also found that kids spend an alarming average of 174 hours in front of their electronic screens during the summer or about 4 hours per day.
Luckily, there are several things that parents can do. Moms and dads can encourage their children to get up and move by doing the same thing themselves. Also, health professionals suggest that families adopt more of a plant-based food diet and to eat the recommended amount of fruits and veggies per day.