Did you know that your parenting style could directly affect your child’s level of physical fitness?
Researchers at Oregon State University looked at the four common parenting styles: authoritative, authoritarian, permissive and uninvolved.
They found that children who had uninvolved parents spent more time in front of a screen each day. They also tended to be less active and more sedentary
Get this--preschoolers in the US now spend four to five hours a day just sitting, often in front of a TV, video game or computer screen.
The lead author of the study, David Schary, points out that when children are very young, playing is the main thing they do during waking hours, so parental support and encouragement is crucial.
He says "When we see preschool children not going outside much and sitting while playing with a cell phone or watching TV, we need to help parents counteract that behavior."
If you have young kids at home, I’d encourage you to start keeping an “activity log” this summer. Keep track of how much time your kids spend in physical activity, and if they’re vegging out in front of screen or with other electronic media, it’s time to make some changes. Oh and by the way, fitness experts say playing Wii doesn’t count as exercise.
I’m Bill Maier for WBCL.