K-State professor helps Kansas lead the way in school health

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K-STATE PROFESSOR HELPS KANSAS LEAD THE WAY IN SCHOOL HEALTH

MANHATTAN -- Now that winter's changing to spring, it's time to see more children outside playing. Unfortunately, according to Dave Dzewaltowski, head of the kinesiology department at Kansas State University, American children are learning a lesson from their parents and opting to stay inside.

"Not long ago when I was growing up, there were children in the street playing football. Now they just play Madden's NFL video game instead," he said.

Dzewaltowski says that in Kansas, 60 percent of adults are sedentary and 80 percent do not meet the Centers for Disease Control guideline of 30 minutes of moderate exercise five times a week.

However, the societal crawl to the sedentary lifestyle isn't just hitting children at home with their parents' inactive habits. Over the school-age years, physical activity consistently declines at about 5 percent each year.

The Kansas Department of Health sponsors a team from across Kansas called the Kansas LEAN School Health Project whose on-going goal is to increase the quality of diet and physical activity among the state's youth. Dzewaltowski, who is part of the project, says that this program is helping Kansas pull ahead of other states when it comes to school health.

Recently, he received a grant from the Kansas Health Foundation to develop theories explaining why people are inactive or active, and then devise strategies to promote activity among children.

He explains that many schools are misplacing priorities in the physical education curriculum. "Schools often invest resources in competitive sports for a small, elite group of athletes instead of programs for all individuals. We stress competition over participation," he said.

Children who do not participate in competitive sports are left with few alternatives. Dzewaltowski says that a non-competitive after-school program would never survive because it would lose out to competitive teams for precious space and sponsorship. Many schools no longer require physical education, and many no longer offer high-quality programs.

In addition, the general curriculum does not include matters of personal health. Dzewaltowski believes that social studies classes may teach how different cultures eat and exercise. Biology courses may discuss the body's positive response to exercise, and the ways that the body reacts to a proper or improper diet. These modifications would help children see the importance of exercise and nutrition in a way they are not being taught currently, he said.

Exercise intervention at an early age is critical to promote better health because the habits formed by children last long into adulthood. Dzewaltowski says that pre-adolescents in fifth and sixth grade begin to develop sedentary habits because activity is taken out of their daily routines.

"After middle school, we don't have to walk to school and we don't play as often. We enter sedentary occupations with even less recreation time as adults," Dzewaltowski said.

Unfortunately, we don't implement a recess period at work. So while the Kansas LEAN School Health Project helps work out the kinks in our children's curriculum, Dzewaltowski mentions ideas for parents and adults who want to improve children's health:

Recognize the lure of sedentary recreational activities (like television and movies) and resolve to make a more active choice. Take the family to the zoo or on a walk to the park
As a family, set a goal to be moderately active, at the level of a brisk walk, for 30 minutes at least five times a week
Play outside often with younger children where there is space to move
Garden as a family
Change the family eating habits to comply with the food guide pyramid.

For more information, contact Dzewaltowski at 785-532-6765

April 1998