Physical Education Professor Rob Hefley sympathizes with harried parents who worry that lack of exercise is making their kids overweight.  
        
        “It’s really tough, especially in today’s world,” Hefley, a member of the faculty in the Health, Physical Education and Recreation Department at Pittsburg State University, said.

According to an Associated Press poll released today, lack of exercise
edged out junk food as the top concern of the 21 percent of parents who said their children were overweight.

        “It is difficult for today’s parents,” Hefley conceded. “Their children get out school in the middle of the afternoon and often have little to do but sit in front of the television or computer until Mom and Dad get home after work.”

Hefley said one culprit is a world that may seem less safe than the one
parents grew up in.

        “When most of us were growing up,” Hefley said, “parents were less afraid to have their youngsters out playing unsupervised in the yard or with other youngsters in the neighborhood.”

That is no longer an option for many children, especially those still in
elementary school.

Hefley offered several tips for parents concerned about their children’s
inactivity and eating habits.

• Number one, he said, “Don’t even have the junk food in the house. Have healthy snacks available for hungry youngsters when they get home from school, but don’t indulge their preference for chips and cookies.”

• Some schools, the YMCA and other groups, Hefley said, offer after-school programs that include physical activity. Those not only keep kids active, he said, but offer a safe environment for parents who can afford them.

• Model good behavior.

        “Obesity has a genetic link and also a behavioral link,” Hefley said.     
        “Children who come from active families are less likely to be overweight than those whose parents are sedentary.”

In fact, Hefley said, getting their kids active could help parents as
much as their youngsters.

        “Parents who drag themselves in after a hard day at work may shudder at the thought of physical activity,” Hefley said.

“In reality, there’s a good bit of evidence to prove that a walk with your children in the neighborhood or a family trip to the park can actually increase your energy level at the same time it provides definite health and emotional benefits for both the parents and the children.”

Getting kids out of the house and on the road to better physical fitness
is not easy in today’s world, Hefley admits, but it can be done and the
payoff is a physically and emotionally happier youngster.

For more information, contact Dr. Rob Hefley at 620-235-4668,
<rhefley@pittstate.edu>.

For more on the poll, visit: <www.ap-ipsosresults.com>.

Kenneth R. "Ron" Womble
Director, News Services & Media Relations
Pittsburg State University

Office: 213 Russ Hall
Phone: 620-235-4124
Fax: 620-235-4125