Getting children active in a world of technology

Childhood obesity is always a topic for discussion especially with the growing popularity of younger children playing video games. More than 28% of children between the years of 2-11 are overweight with 11% being obese according to the NHS.

How did we get a generation that prefers to sit in front of a tablet or TV screen to go outside and play or kick a ball?

Primary teacher Leanne Taylor said that parents should ‘take [children] outside and do things. It doesn’t even necessarily have to be taking them places if you don’t have a car or anything you can almost always walk to a park’.

According to Sports England, 32.9% of children participate in less than 30 minutes of exercise a day. This is below the recommended average.

Fewer children now take part in extracurricular activities and many sports clubs are seeing less children progress through the age groups. Hockey coach Jacob Ranson believes it is more important than ever to get them active to avoid any unnecessary health issues, otherwise, our future generations may suffer.

“It’s vitally important to keep them active, it’s good for their health, it’s good to keep them fit. It is good for them to be with friends and be outside and it stimulates the brain as well. It is brilliant for kids to stay active.”

Children need to get away from the screens and outside. It is about finding the balance between educating them on the ever-evolving new technology and enjoying a local park.

Will we ever find the balance between exercise and technology to help the future generations?