A Sedentary Lifestyle Leads to Childhood Obesity

With the advent of technology, children are most likely to stay indoors and play mobile or computer games rather than go out and play under the sun. This may lead to a sedentary lifestyle that is detrimental to your child’s development.

What is Childhood Obesity?

Childhood obesity is a growing concern in the United States as it affects over 30% of children; this number has ballooned since 1980.

With the increase in the cases of obesity in children, there are now more instances of diabetes, hypertension, and other related diseases in kids. A child is considered obese when his or her body mass index for age is higher than 95%.

Factors such as environment, lifestyle, and diet affect your child’s health. If your child is bombarded with commercials of unhealthy food or if these are easily accessible, the chances of obesity increase.

Lack of physical activity will make your child obese. The accessibility and prevalence of computers and mobile devices have made it easier for children to amuse themselves. They do not have to leave the comforts of home to run or bike in parks. This leads to poor health, weakness, fatigue, and it paves the way for cardiovascular diseases, once your child reaches old age.

The risk for certain diseases increase, if your child is obese. Your kid may get heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, cancer, high levels of cholesterol, and sleep apnea just to name a few.

How Can Your Child Avoid a Sedentary Lifestyle?

Now that you know the risks associated with childhood obesity, you must do what you can to avoid it. Enroll your child in summer camp for kids to encourage them to participate in various sports that keep them active during weekends or the summer.

At summer camp, your child gets to join various sports such as swimming, basketball, volleyball, soccer, and other fun sports that keep them active and healthy. Your child needs to sweat a bit and get a few bumps and bruises to help them develop into a stronger and holistic person. There are also extreme sports such as wall climbing, and others, if your child is the adventurous type.

The variety of sports at camp helps your child learn different skills and discover talents that he or she might have. Your child will also meet other kids their age, which helps develop camaraderie among campers. Making new friends is another benefit of enrolling your child in a summer camp. Find a program that best suits your child at Zodiac Day Camp or Zodiac and Swim School.