Get Your Kid Moving to Avoid Obesity!

by Karen Jashinsky

It's no secret that America is suffocating in the stranglehold of obesity, but would it shock you to discover that over the last decade, California has experienced one of the fastest rates of increase in adult obesity of any state in the nation? More than half of adults in Los Angeles County and California now are overweight or are already obese, with children not too far behind.

A closer look at the schools can help us understand. Although vending machines are banned from many California schools, obesity rates are still rising while attention spans are lowering. Many schools are being challenged with budget cuts for PE programs, rising illiteracy rates, and this growing issue of obesity. Studies link decreased activity levels and higher sugar intake to this stratospheric number of children with ADHD and bi-polar disorder.

Paul Cummins, founder of the non-profit New Visions Foundation in Los Angeles says, "Society's mistake is thinking that schools can fix everything. Schools are not the cause. They are a reflection." Many schools do not have fulltime PE teachers, but some schools are starting to bring in external resources to assist with health and fitness programs.

Sabrina Bow, the director of the charter Los Angeles Academy for the Arts and Enterprises (Paul Cummins serves on the advisory committee) has taken the No Vending Machine policy further by banning junk food and bringing in resources to run the Health and Wellness Program. Joi Madison, Director of Programming for 02 Max Fitness inspires her students by teaching them good eating habits from the start, since studies show that 80% of people who maintain their ideal weight do it by exercise. Even moms have jumped on the bandwagon. Mom of three, D. Williams believes that "releasing steam" may help her 15-year-old combat his ADHD diagnosis.

One of Ms. Bow's young students proudly maintains that her family cut out junk foods. "We never knew it wasn't good for us," she admits, "but we do now and I feel so much more energetic and alert." Psychologist Kristina Diener agrees. "It's important to understand how food affects mood. If parents realized this, they'd keep their children out of the cookie jar."

Sophisticated students know the value of exercise. Hollywood High student, Fernando, found a novel solution by participating in the Governor's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports challenge, where a teen between the ages of 14 and18 can sign up for the challenge online and get to work out at 24 Hour Fitness for up to a semester FREE of charge. Fernando says he feels this helped him focus academically and hopes to keep doing this regularly.

Want to get involved? Help your child understand good health from the start. "Focus on fresh," says Deborah Klein, MS, RD, a registered dietician in Los Angeles. Foods such as vegetables and fruits are known to reduce cancer rates.

Jump on the fitness bandwagon and start a coalition. If you can't afford a gym, walking will do. Just get going! Involve your school, friends, family and everybody who wants to bring Los Angeles back to the healthy and fit state it should be!

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