There have been many different efforts to abolish
childhood obesity and yet America’s children are getting fatter. It is not
food, nor advertising for food that makes our children fat. It is simply
children not getting the exercise they need. Normal gym exercise or track
running is not always enjoyable and I will be the first one to admit that but
getting out on a field or court and playing a team sport is hard to beat. The
hardest part about getting children to play team sports is getting their parent
(YOU) to bring them to registration. Chris Moerdyk says in "Advertising
Alone Cannot Be Blamed for Childhood Obesity" that “It's all about being
accepted and being cool. Kids don't just get into bad habits on their
own—they're influenced almost entirely by their friends. Frankly, banning
advertising is hardly worth bothering about,”(Moerdyk). So if a child’s friends
are involved in sports then they are more likely to want to do the same. After
getting the child involved, he or she will make new friends; and having friends
that lead a healthy lifestyle will greatly influence them. Richard Berman in
"A Lack of Physical Activity Causes Obesity” states that, “the vast
majority of people believe that parents, not food advertising, represent the
primary factor in kids' food choices and weight.” Americans lead a very busy
lifestyle and moms have trouble taking their kids with them to the grocery
stores or to do their shopping. When you stop and think though, if a mom could
drop the child off at practice, she could run to the store get her shopping
done and then pick up her child. This solves two problems, not only does she
get her shopping done quickly and without interruption; but the child gets lots
of exercise, makes friends, and has fun doing it. The simplest way to solve
this issue is to push parents to take action and to get their child involved in
team sports and see what a difference it makes in their child’s life.
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