What You Need To Know
Each day, your children make
health choices that affect their
future quality of life. The kinds
of food they eat, along with their
activity level and other lifestyle
choices, can become habits that
determine their lifelong physical
and emotional well-being.
Unfortunately, too many American
children are already at risk
for health problems usually
associated with sedentary adults.
According to the U.S. Office of the Surgeon General:
- More than 12.5 million children
and adolescents are overweight
in the U.S.
- The rate of childhood obesity
has more than tripled over
the past 30 years.
As a result, these children are
at an increased risk for heart
disease, diabetes, high cholesterol,
sleep apnea, asthma,
orthopedic problems, hypertension
and other serious health
problems as they grow older.
Your children need you to
help them make smart health
choices. You are the best one
to teach them smart choices.
Did You Know?
A balanced diet and physical
activity help children:
- Grow and develop.
- Concentrate and learn.
- Build strong bones and muscles.
- Maintain a healthy weight.
- Take in vitamins and nutrients.
- Feel good about themselves.
- Become healthy and productive
adults.
Visit the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute Web site – We Can at
www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/heart/obesity/wecan.
This article contains tips,
tools and resources to help.
As with other lessons, children
should learn from your example;
they need to see you making
healthy choices. The USAA
Educational Foundation publication,
Choosing A Healthy
Lifestyle offers more information
on this topic.
Topics covered in this section are:
|
Education
Education