Safety Measures Actually Detrimental Health of Kids
Today in history marks a time when childhood and teen obesity rates are at a record high, and the worst thing is that the rates seem to escalate by the tick of the clock. Much of the blame for this record high teenage obesity is the emergence of very many fast food kiosks and leading of sedentary lifestyles. Funny how parents would go to any length to ensure safety for the kids, which can mean locking them up in houses instead of allowing them to get out and about jumping and playing. Little do parents know that this ‘safety measure’ is actually detrimental to the health of the kids?
While there are measures that can be taken to address this problem and make the kids more active and well informed on the right nutrition, fitness and diet choices, the biggest problem lies in getting teens off their phone, computer, or TV for a time long enough to be at least active and burn substantial amount of calories. However, the gaming industry is recognizing the effect sedentary lifestyles have on teens, no wonder the industry is creating games like the Nintendo Wii gaming system that will ensure the users participate actively in the game and not just sit there clicking buttons in a motionless environment.
Encourage Teens To Get Out and Get Fit
Parents should however be responsible and lead by example meaning they should not only encourage teens to go outdoors and get active but they should accompany the teens in participating in outdoor activities. Things like bike riding, mountain climbing, rock wall climbing, boating and hiking, can be so much fun when done as a family and besides, no one among you will be consuming any empty calories or piling up the same when participating in outdoor activities.
Encourage teens to take part in recreational sporting activities, not necessarily in competitive leagues but in any sporting team in your local area that can make them active. Softball game, volleyball, and soccer game are few of the sporting games a teenager can take part in and be active. Working on the lawn can be another great way to encourage teenagers to be active outdoors. Remember the key is to ensure the teenager expends more calories than those they consume.
Make The Activities Fun
You should however ensure that the activities you encourage your teen to partake are interesting because boring activities will mean they will lose interest very fast and revert back to their desk bound sedentary lifestyle. Additionally, when you have so many interesting activities in line for your teenager, it will mean they will be too busy to think of overeating or worse still to consume empty calories due to boredom.
Get Rid of High Calorie Foods and Drinks
Last but not least, you should encourage healthy eating habits in your home. Get rid of high calorie foods and drinks like artificial fruit juices and sodas and instead encourage them to drink lots of water. Similarly, introduce lots of fresh fruits and vegetables to their daily diet and go a step further to avoid buying convenience foods.
