April 18, 2010 Together, we can fight childhood diabetes and obesity Throughout this past year, it seems the one topic that has been the most consistent item in magazines, newspapers, and television is childhood obesity. I have had talks with area elementary physical education teachers, and they see the results of overweight and obese children firsthand in their classes. It seems that two thirds of the children fall into that category. The problem in tough economic times is that, if a subject is going to be cut back, it seems physical education is at the top of the list. I have talked with local physicians; and they are seeing more and more young people with either early warning signs of diabetes or even cases of early onset diabetes. This class of diabetes used to be called “adult onset diabetes” because most of the people were over 40 years of age. Now diabetes is finding its way into young teenagers. One study mentioned that, if a child under the age of 15 had diabetes, their life span would be shortened by 15 years. If the average life span for an American is around 78 years, and you subtract 15 years, that means many of our youngsters today will die in their early 60s. It has been said that this generation will be the first to not live as long as their parents. The statistics show that, if a child is overweight at a young age, the long-term result is that about 24 out of 25 will turn out to be a fat adult. Overweight and obesity in adults is linked strongly to high blood pressure, heart disease, certain cancers, diabetes and physically disabling conditions that make it hard to move or even walk. Most of the studies on childhood obesity stress two facts in children that are overweight or obese. One is the type of diet that they eat; and in many cases, the amount of food that is consumed during the day that is high in fat and sugar but lacking in nutrition. The second fact is the lack of exercise that children are getting. It is hard to blame physical education in public schools, since they only see the kids for less than an hour a day. The key is being active several hours a day; and that means exercise, some form of activity or any kind of movement during the day after school. Even First Lady Michelle Obama has taken a strong stance on this growing problem of overweight children, and is trying to get the trend turned around so that a majority of children are fit instead of fat. Mayor Narvaiz has recognized this problem, and organized a San Marcos Healthy Task Force to look into it. The task force’s recommendations will be forthcoming in a few weeks. There are other organizations that are also looking into this problem; and efforts are being made to get these groups together for some real coordinated efforts to see if San Marcos can change the number of overweight children that are now in schools. Two local women that are doing their part to get kids active are Linda Alexander and Sarah Hale. With the help of the San Marcos Runners Club, these two ladies have organized a kids’ run. Just Kidz! Just Run! Just Fun! The run is for children from kindergarten through fifth grade, and it will be held at Aquarena Center on Saturday, April 24 with registrations starting at 10:30 a.m. The best part of the whole event is that it is free. The event is held in conjunction with the Earth Day activities that are being held there also. The first 200 kids will receive a special medal after the race, and they are planning on having some fun activities for the children after the run — just for fun. If you have children, and want to involve them in a great fun run with other children where everyone is a winner, then make sure you bring them to Aquarena for a start at getting fit. Let’s have a good turnout, and see if we can turn this epidemic of obesity in children in San Marcos around. Dr. Maurice Johnson - better known around San Marcos as “Moe” - is a professor in the Department of Health, P.E., Recreation and Dance at Texas State University - San Marcos. Moe has been a fixture in the San Marcos running community - both as a runner and race organizer - since way back when Moby Dick was a minnow. His column on running and fitness appears each Sunday in the Sports section of the San Marcos Daily Record. • Recent “Running With Moe” Columns • Home • About the Club • Current News • Club Runs • Places To Run • TX Running Clubs • Running Links • Useful Stuff Upcoming Races • Race Results • Country Roads 10K & Kids Run • ARA-Moe’s Better Half Marathon • “Running With Moe” Contact Us!