Roswell launches child fitness program
Posted at: 11/13/2012 6:30 PM
By: Erica Zucco, KOB Eyewitness News
Roswell city officials kicked off a child fitness campaign in elementary schools this week.
“It’s important for school-age kids to remember that the condition of their body has a direct effect on the ability of their mind to take on the challenges of school, to take advantage of the day-to-day activities that they do,” Mayor Del Jurney said.
The Department of Health, Healthy Kids of Chaves County and the mayor’s office worked together on the 21-day “5-2-1-0” campaign, jumpstarting healthy habits for kids and specifically targeting third graders. A 2011 study showed that in New Mexico, 21.9% of third graders were overweight, compared with about 2% fewer nationwide. The program is aided in part by a community grant from the Centers for Disease Control.
“And if they take the challenge for 21 days it can become a habit,” Health Kids of Chaves County coordinator Paula Camp said. “And also if the children take this information home, they can get their families to do the same thing – siblings, parents, grandparents, whoever.”
The program focuses on healthier eating, drinking more water, and how kids spend their time.
“The screen time especially, children are watching TV, they’re playing video games, but they’re not moving,” Camp said. “We want them to get up and moving and we also want them to eat well.”
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