What Walking to School Can Do for the Health of Both You and Your Child
Walking is a great way to improve overall health and boost your cardiovascular system. Studies show that lack of physical activity is a major risk factor for chronic illness in both children and adults. Physically inactive children are at greater risk to grow up to be physically inactive adults, increasing the chances that they will develop health problems such as obesity, diabetes, and other related illnesses.
According to the National Longitudinal Study of Youth, obesity rates among children have nearly doubled in the past 20 years. This can be attributed to a number of factors, but is primarily caused by a sedentary lifestyle. Studies show that only one-fourth of Americans get the 30 minutes of recommended daily exercise, causing the obesity rates to skyrocket among children and teens. For this reason, healthcare professionals are striving to motivate children to integrate exercise into their daily routine by promoting walking and bicycling to school.
Walking has also been shown to provide a number of health benefits in addition to reducing the risk of obesity. Some of the long-term benefits of walking include lowering blood pressure, improving one’s cholesterol levels, reducing the risk of osteoporosis, and even lowering the risk of certain types of cancers. Walking to school is not only beneficial to children, but also provides benefits to parents who walk or bike to school with their children.
Here at the Southern Hills Hospital and Medical Center in Las Vegas, we believe that regular exercise is an important part of maintaining your health, regardless of your age. For more information on the benefits of exercise or safe walking tips, visit our website or contact us at (702) 880-2100.
