Historically, those who were fat and overweight meant they were likely to survive through undernourishment and infection. But now, there are many health related risks of being overweight, some being; cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, sleep apnea, asthma and heart disease (Ebbeling, Pawlak, Ludwig 2002). Because of these health issues, programs are being promoted in schools by the government to lower the obesity rate in the United States. Healthy People 2020 and SPARK (Sports, play, and Active Recreation for Kids) are creating programs for teachers and families to educate themselves and convince people to get up and go play outside and be active. SPARK is also working with the CDC to incorporate school health programs that teach students and teachers how to eat, and maintain a healthy lifestyle. The CDC states that “Health education provides students with opportunities to acquire the knowledge, attitude, and skills necessary for making health-promoting decisions, achieving health literacy, adopting health-enhancing behaviors, and promoting the health of others (Centers of Disease Control and Prevention 2013). Health education addresses topics like alcohol/ drug use, healthy eating/nutrition, mental and emotional health, personal health and wellness, physical activity, safety and injury prevention, sexual health, tobacco use and violence prevention (Centers of Disease Control and Prevention 2013).
Not only does SPARK incorporate health programs but it also offers many advantages to school programs that create fun activities for physical movement during the day. They offer programs like Physical education classes, classroom activities and recess, after school programs, early childhood development to teachers and recreation...
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...n children for 24 years. The SPARK team will continue to research new ideas and activates that appeal to children and teachers so that they can always be motivated to play games with friends and get in shape at the same time. SPARK strives to create a common goal which is to promote and teach children how to live a healthy life style.
Resources
Ebbeling, C. B., Pawlak, D. B., & Ludwig, D. S. (2002). Childhood obesity: public-health crisis, common sense cure. The lancet, 360(9331), 473-482.
Centers For Disease Control and Prevention. (2013). Components of Coordinated School Health. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/cshp/components.htm
SPARK Physical Education Curriculum. (n.d.). K-12 Physical Education Programs, & Elementary School PE Curriculum. Retrieved February 10, 2014, from http://www.sparkpe.org/physical-education/
“Spark is a researched based public health organization.”(Sparkpe.org) When you buy their lesson plans and equipment you are also buying the outstanding service that comes with Spark. You also get a spark team that comes to your specific school and helps with all of the lesson plans. They also help interact with kids and get them up and moving, all in all they are a good motivation tool to have. For a school that has a poor budget it can be hard to get Spark out to you, but you’re able to call them up ask for advice and move forward as a program. Spark doesn’t just strive to kill obesity within children; they also strive to educate adults so they know the right steps to help their students become healthy individuals. In a nut shell each Spark program “fosters environmental and behavioral change by providing a coordinated package of a highly thought through curriculum, onsite teacher training, extensive follow-up support, and content matching equipment.”(Sparkpe.org) Since Spark is still a relatively new organization they are still growing, learning and striving for success every day. They first started studying Elementary education in 1989. Sense then they have created a full K-12 curriculum. They have made a dieting curriculum for growing children. They produce their own equipment and lastly they back up their lesson plans with real people that not only teach the kids but teach the teachers. This curriculum sounds very difficult and complex; yes, but they help by breaking it down into five core messages.
Hellmich, Nanci. "Report: More PE, Activity Programs Needed in Schools." USA Today. Gannett, 23 May 2013. Web. 17 Apr. 2014.
... physical education (J. Sproule, Ed.). Retrieved February 25, 2014, from Sage Journal website: http://epe.sagepub.com/content/11/3/257.short#cited-by
“Healthy People provides science-based, 10-year national objectives for improving the health of all Americans.” ( United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Healthy People 2020 , 2011). It acts as a national guide for disease prevention and health promotion. There are various objectives and goals which serve as the guideline to achieve overall improvement in health . ‘Educational and Community-Based Programs’ is one of them. According to U.S Department of Health and Human Services the main goal of these programs is to “Increase the quality, availability, and effectiveness of educational and community-based programs designed to prevent disease and injury, improve health, and enhance quality of life.” (HHS, Healthy People 2020, 2011). This particular goal of Healthy People 2020 focuses on increasing the number educational and community based programs to increase awareness about disease prevention and health among every individual of the society. It focuses on educating them on various topics including chronic diseases, substance abuse, prevention of injury and violence to encourage and enhance health. It emphasizes on increasing the quantity and quality of such programs so that a larger population could benefit from the program and gain effective knowledge to achieve a healthy life.
Writer’s angle: The idea of ending childhood obesity is not quit arguable. Though, how to go about it and the main causes and triggers for childhood obesity
“Benefits of PE in School.” A Movement for a Fit and Healthy America. Web. 23 Oct 2013
In order for children to achieve wellness, they are completely dependent upon the adults in their lives: parents, caregivers, friends, and teachers. In order to achieve wellness, teachers and caregivers must model and exhibit appropriate behaviors, i.e. exercise, healthy eating habits, personal hygiene, emotional fulfillment, and knowledge of healthy habits. Children begin learning this at home first with their parents/caregivers. Teachers are the next important person in a child’s life to help them achieve wellness (Sorte, et al., 2011). It is imperative for teachers and families to work together in order to achieve wellness for children.
National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Prevention. School Health Policies and Programs Study. September 30, 2002. April 6, 2003.
"The increased prevalence of overweight and obesity particularly among children and adolescents is a severe public health problem" (Bray, 2005). According to our text, health education and health promotion are recognized increasingly as ways to meet public health objectives and improve the success of public health and medical interventions around the world (Gollust, 2014).
Healthy People 2020 is a program for the promotion of health and the prevention of diseases, launched by the Department of Health and Human Services in December 2010. According to healthypeople.gov, this program has four overarching goals which are first to achieve healthy, longer lives free of preventable diseases, injuries, and premature deaths; to achieve health fairness, eliminate differences, and improve all groups’ health; also to produce social and physical environments that encourage good health; and last but not least to promote life’s quality, healthy development, and healthy behaviors through all life stages. This program has a vision of a community where people live long, healthy lives. Healthy People 2020 offers a comprehensive
Childhood obesity is a serious problem among American children. Some doctors are even calling childhood obesity an epidemic because of the large percentage of children being diagnosed each year as either overweight or obese. “According to DASH sixteen to thirty-three percent of American children each year is being told they are obese.” (Childhood Obesity) There is only a small percentage, approximately one percent, of those children who are obese due to physical or health related issues; although, a condition that is this serious, like obesity, could have been prevented. With close monitoring and choosing a healthier lifestyle there would be no reason to have such a high obesity rate in the United States (Caryn). Unfortunately, for these children that are now considered to be obese, they could possibly be facing some serious health conditions, such as heart disease, diabetes, and some types of cancers. All of these diseases have been linked to obesity through research. These children never asked for this to happen to them; however, it has happened, and now they will either live their entire life being obese, or they will be forced to reverse what has already been done (Childhood Obesity).
There are a number of federal, state, and local school programs to help students reach fitness goals. The missing link in having physically fit children seems to be the parents. They are allowing children to remain sedentary with the television and computers. Not enough children have parents who monitor their child’s activity schedules, expose them to physical activity, and who serve as role models in being active themselves. Sports involvement and competition is very important in a child’s life, but sometimes can go too far. Physical activity offers both positive and negative aspects in a child’s life.
Children and adolescents need to be shown how to be active and how to live a healthy life.
Educational institutions have the potential to, first and foremost, educate and assist the young people of today with making the positive, healthful choices necessary to maintain good health. Over 4,500 students have been followed in recent research studies and these “thousands of sixth graders who participated in a school-based health program were less obese by eighth grade than a group of similar children who did not, according to a new study done for the National Institutes of Health” (Rabin). Schools need to create health programs focused on assisting all children suffering from being overweight or obese. Policies such as fitness programs, nutrition classes, and healthful meals can even impact every student by creating a strong foundation and awareness of the negative, long term effects associated with practicing unhealthy habits. Although the financial expenses would be necessary, the adaption of scho...
Some activity clubs we provide include, dancing, running, jump roping, basketball and soccer clubs, just to name a few. These clubs encourage kids to stay active. Our PE program also sends out monthly newsletters to the parents that give them ways to help their child live a healthy lifestyle. The National Association for Sport and Physical Education states, “Regular physical activity improves functional status and limits disability during the middle and later adult years. Physical activity contributes to quality of life, psychological health, and the ability to meet physical work demands. Physical education can serve as a vehicle for helping students to develop the knowledge, attitudes, motor skills, behavioral skills, and confidence needed to adopt and maintain physically active lifestyles. The outcomes of a quality physical education program include the development of students’ physical competence, health-related fitness, self-esteem, and overall enjoyment of physical activity. These outcomes enable students to make informed decisions and choices about leading a physically active lifestyle. In early years children derive pleasure from movement sensations and experience challenge and joy as they sense a growing competence in their movement ability. Evidence suggests that the level of participation, the degree of skill, and the number of activities mastered as a child directly influences the extent to which children will continue to participate in physical activity as an