Whenever I read about being a nation of obese slackers and how that affects our kids, I think about the movie WALL-E, when the people on the ship were blobby, gelatinous things that lost their ability to move around on account of technological laziness.
As a society we blame technology like television and video games for keeping our kids in the house, when they should be outdoors entertaining themselves with physical activities. Maybe that’s so, but why blame technology? As parents we have a responsibility to ourselves and our children to unplug the techno devices and encourage more activity.
In the last twenty years, obesity statistics have risen to startling new levels. According to Jeff Levi, executive director of the Trust for America’s Health, “More than two-thirds of states now have adult obesity rates above 25 percent.” In 1991, there wasn’t a single state with a rating over 20 percent.
What’s changed in the last nineteen years? Technology, I tell you. TECHNOLOGY!
Statistics currently show that one out of every three children in America is obese. This sets kids up for a life filled with dangerous health-risks, like Type 2 diabetes, heart disease and high blood pressure.
Experts can shake a stick at the issue all the want. I’m not expert, but the battle has got to begin by turning off the electronic devices and getting outside again. Get kids involved in extra-curricular activities and sports. Walk and play in the park. Get out and do something… and not just the kids. You too parents. Our kids will follow our lead, and only we can lead them to healthier lifestyles.
Oh, and on the way home from the park, resist the urge to stop at McDonald’s. The answers lie in changing our activity levels and our eating habits. It’s not as hard as it sounds, I swear.