Bid to get SA's kids moving

2004-09-29 16:44

Cape Town - Experts say childhood obesity has reached epidemic proportions worldwide, with 155 million schoolgoing kids overweight or just plain fat.

And South Africa is no exception. According to the Heart Foundation, an alarming 12% of children the country are obese.

Part of the reason is that today's children simply don't exercise, says the University of Cape Town's Medical Research Council unit for exercise science.

According to research project manager Karen Sharwood, a study has shown that less than a third of black South African children are offered physical education lessons at school.

The same study had revealed that more than 40% of youngsters in grades four and five did not regularly engage in vigorous physical activity, she said on Wednesday.

It was for this reason that the unit had decided to push for the adoption of a Charter of Physical Activity and Sport for Children and Youth.

The unit is currently circulating a draft document, and has invited what it says are key roleplayers to a workshop in Johannesburg next week.

These include national and provincial government departments, NGOs, universities and technikons,

"Our ultimate goal is to come up with a way forward, and one suggestion is a task team to ensure that the guidelines are carried out," Sharwood said.

"There are so many small initiatives, but no-one knows about them. What we are trying to do is get everyone in the same place."

She said the idea of the charter was "basically allowing a child the right to be active".

The draft was modelled on a charter adopted by the Australian government in 2002. Australians involved in that process would speak at next week's meeting.

Sharwood said shaping children's attitudes to physical activity could make a major difference to government spending in terms of the long-term health cost of treating chronic lifestyle diseases.

The draft charter says physical activity and sport should be acknowledged as an essential part of daily living. Parents should take primary responsibility in "exerting a positive influence" to this end.

It says physical activity should have a prominent place in the school curriculum, and communities must provide appropriate infrastructure and safe facilities.

Children and youth at all levels should be protected against physical and psychological abuse and excessive or inappropriate training techniques, advises the draft charter.

- SAPA