Child's play: physical activity at an early age may help prevent chronic illnesses over a lifetime - Sixth Annual Youth Fitness Section

American Fitness, July-August, 1992 by Scott O. Roberts

Physical activity at an early age may help prevent chronic illnesses over a lifetime.

Most experts agree there is a youth fitness crisis m America. Despite awareness, there is no consensus on the magnitude of the problem or what should be done about it. Concern over the health of American children has urged leading education, government and medical organizations to develop youth fitness recommendations.

Physically active children have fewer chronic health conditions, according to most experts. Recent research reveals they are at lower risk for premature illness or death than sedentary children. in fact, a sedentary lifestyle carries significant risk for developing heart disease, obesity, diabetes and other chronic disease in adulthood. Hypertension and obesity have also been increasingly identified in children.

Promoting exercise for children at an early age may help prevent chronic illnesses over a lifetime. The American College of Sports Medicine recommends children engage in 20 to 30 minutes of exercise each day to develop and maintain optimal health and well-being. Educators, parents and fitness professionals can help achieve this goal by showing children the entertainment value of fitness.

Training Programs

Exercise should be a positive and enjoyable experience for children. When designing children's fitness programs, it is important to remember they differ from adults physiologically, anatomically and psychologically. An effective, long-term training program should be based on a child's abilities and interests.

Exercise capacity and maxima oxygen uptake increase throughout childhood regardless of training. Although children have lower anaerobic capacities than adolescents and adults, their ability to increase aerobic and anaerobic power improves as they mature. However, aerobic capacities are significantly greater in active children compared to sedentary children. The average aerobic improvement following exercise training averages 8-10%, depending on the mode and intensity of training.

Testing health-related fitness factors in American children, rather than athletic ability, has produced the following discoveries.

1. As many as 40% of children between ages 5 and 8 already exhibit heart disease risk factors such as obesity, hypertension and high cholesterol. 2. Recent data shows children are becoming fatter than in the early '60s. 3.Muscular strength and endurance is poor among American children. 4. The overall physical fitness habits of children have worsened since the '60s. 5. Thirty-two percent of fourth graders watch six or more hours of television daily.

Healthy People 2000 has responded to such reports by campaigning for national health promotion and disease prevention objectives for the nation. It has set the following goals for children.

1. Increase to at least 75% the proportion of children ages 6 to 17 who engage in vigorous exercise three or more days per week for 20 or more minutes per occasion. 2. Increase to at least 50% the proportion of children in first through 12th grade who participate in daily physical education classes.

Training Recommendations

Children typically participate in short-burst, high-energy exercise. They should be encouraged to participate in sustained activities that use large muscle groups. Exercise intensity should start out low and progress gradually because of the difficulty in monitoring heart rate in children. A specific time should be committed to kids' aerobic exercise, either during or after school. The duration of the exercise session will depend on the specific activity and the intensity of the training session. Two or three days of training per week allows adequate time for children to participate in other activities, and is sufficient for a training effect. Since children have a lower capacity for evaporative cooling, special precautions should be taken when they are exercising in hot weather.

Numerous studies have demonstrated prepubescent children gain significant strength following structured, supervised resistance training. In addition to developing muscular strength, resistance training improves flexibility, physical performance, body composition, cardiorespiratory fitness and blood pressure. Children should be encouraged to participate in a variety of activities that involve repetitiive movements against an opposing force.

Proper lifting technique and safety are the two most important factors to consider. Start with small one-half to one-pound weights and perform a variety of upper and lower-body exercises. With the exception of several companies that manufacture equipment specifically for children exercise machines are designed for adults.

If children cannot be properly fitted for the machines, manual resistance training is a preferable option. Provided by a partner rather than equipment, children take turns applying resistance during different movements. For example, one child lies on the ground while the other applies resistance to the legs during leg lifts. While one child bends at the waist and tries to raise his or her arms, the other child applies resistant force. These exercises can also be done individually with the use of exercise tubing. All resistance exercises should be performed in a slow, steady manner. Use a specific count during the initial movement, the hold phase, and then return to the resting phase.