What is Tucson doing to fight childhood obesity?
Nov 22, 2006 10:33 PM MST
Child obesity is a national epidemic.
Over the past 25 years, the number of overweight children has doubled.
The problem is more prevalent among minorities and females.
Many health experts say overweight children have a 70 percent chance of becoming obese or overweight adults.
The reason is simple: kids are spending more time playing video games, watching television and surfing the internet. They are sitting in front of a screen instead of playing outside getting exercise.
Many school districts shifted their focus away from physical education classes to concentrate more on academics, which leads to the question, What is the Tucson School District doing to fight the child obesity problem?
News 4's John Overall tracked down the answer.
Elisa Busby leads by example at Drachman Primary Magnet School.
She's one of just 14 Physical Education Specialists working for in elementary schools for the Tucson Unified School District.
That leaves 60 elementary schools without P.E. teachers.
Busby tells News 4 that she's seen some changes in her students over the 12 years she's been teaching Phys Ed.
"Their attitudes, yes, they still want to be active, but their opportunities to be active have been limited."
That's because Tucson Unified, like many other School Districts, has cut back on Physical Education over the past 10 years to concentrate more on academics.
But that plan has backfired. Kids today are getting heavier than ever before.
But some schools are bringing back physical education. By next fall, every school in the district must implement a physical education plan.
Sue Habkirk is the Program Director for Comprehensive Health Education at Tucson Unified.
She said, "The major reason was there was a federal mandate that came down that said we are going to include physical education and physical activity in school."
At Drachman Magnet school, most of the kids are slim and trim, but there are some who are overweight and some are obese.
Busby said, "I do have some in this school, and we're working on them and we do have many programs. It's not just in PE. They can have other opportunities."
Next year, district wide, all kids will be required to take 30 minutes of physical education per day, plus at least one recess and lunch recess where they can burn even more calories.
District officials say that will not only help the child obesity problem, it could also help students do better academically and cut down on disruptive behavior.
Childhood Obesity fight in Tucson