Here’s an article in The Vancouver Sun about Stephen Kline’s new book, Globesity. In it he argues that we need to worry less about fast food and advertising to kids and more about turning off the TV in our home so that kids get outside and stay active.
As the parent of a 4 year old this rings true for me. I find that even if she only watches 30 minutes of TV a day, it seems to train her mind that ‘fun’ equals TV, rather than being active. It makes her a passive participant in fun, rather an active one. This is exacerbated by those of us in urban contexts where it’s more difficult for kids to just run around outside.
But this is also true for a lot of us adults as well. Fun and relaxation is increasingly becoming consuming entertainment rather than actively engaging in physical activity. In many cases, excessive TV viewing is much like an addiction to a stimulant. Let’s have the courage to delete that PVR’d show and go outside and move our bodies.
