Active Schools Acceleration Project: Fact Sheet
Contacts
Julia Bloom HerzogNate Whitman
ChildObesity180ChildObesity180
(617) 636-3563 (617) 636-6815
ASAP is an initiative of ChildObesity180. Conducted in collaboration with Tufts University, ChildObesity180 fosters cross-sector collaboration through a portfolio of high-impact initiatives to reverse the trend of childhood obesity.The ChildObesity180 membership is comprised of national leaders from the public, nonprofit, academic, and private sectors who are using their reach and expertise to drive an integrated national strategy of high-impact initiatives to prevent childhood obesity.
Childhood Obesity
- As a result of obesity, the current generation, for the first time in the nation's history, may live shorter lives than their parents.[i]
- Disparities exist along income,racial, andethnic lines. Hispanic, Mexican American, and Non-Hispanic black children having higher than average rates of both overweight and obesity, and family income is also correlated with a child’s risk of being overweight, with the association varying by race/ethnicity. In 2009-2010, 31.8% of American children between the ages of 2 and 19 were overweight, and another 16.9% were obese.[ii], [iii]
- Nine states, plus the District of Columbia, have childhood obesity rates greater than 20%. Nine of the ten states with the highest rates of obese children are in the South, as are nine out of the ten states with the highest rates of poverty.[iv]
Physical Activity
- We have engineered physical activity out of our lives to a significant degree. Many neighborhoods and shopping malls have been designed for car use, rather than walking or public transit. Many cities and towns have consolidated school districts, requiring longer commutes, by car or bus, for children to and from school.[v]
- Less than half (42%) of children ages 6–11 years of age engage in the recommended 60 minutes of physical activity per day.[vi]
- There is emerging evidence to supporta positive effect of physical activity on academic performance.[vii]
- While leisure-time physical activity has stayed level or is slightly increasing, work-related activity, transportation activity, and activity in the home are declining, resulting in increasing sedentary time and an overall decline in total physical activity compared with recent decades.[viii]
- As school districts struggle with shrinking budgets and increased pressure to improve children's test scores, they often face difficult choices that may involve cutting quality physical education and recess in favor of traditional academic programs.[ix]
[i]Olshansky, S.J., D.J. Passaro, et al. (2005). "A potential decline in life expectancy in the United States in the 21st century." N Engl J Med352(11): 1138-45.
[ii]Ogden et al. (2012). “Prevalence of Obesity and Trends in Body Mass Index Among US Children and Adolescents, 1999-2010.” JAMA. 2012;307(5): E1-E8.
[iii]Freedman et. al. (2007). “Childhood Overweight and Family Income.” MedGenMed. 9(2): 26
[iv]Levi, J. e. a. (2011). F as in Fat: How Obesity Policies are Failing America, Trust for America's Health.
[v]Sallis, J.F. and K. Glanz (2006). "The role of built environments in physical activity, eating, and obesity in childhood." Future Child16(1): 89-108.
[vi]Troiano, R.P., D. Berrigan, et al. (2008). "Physical activity in the United States measured by accelerometer." Med Sci Sports Exerc40(1): 181-8.
[vii]Singh et al. (2012). ”Physical Activity and Performance at School: A Systematic Review of the Literature Including a Methodological Quality Assessment.” Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 166 (1): 49-55.
[viii]Brownson, R.C., T.K. Boehmer, et al. (2005). "Declining rates of physical activity in the United States: what are the contributors?" Annu Rev Public Health26: 421-43.
[ix]RWJF (2007). Active Education. Physical Education, Physical Activity and Academic Performance. Active Living Research, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.