It’s a fundamental human right for children to participate in sport, physical activity or play and to realise the highest attainable standard of health – this is what UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) and the WHO (World Health Organization believe).
With this is mind – we are just four weeks away from witnessing the launch of “global kids report cards” at the International Society for Physical Activity and Health (ISPAH) conference (www.ispah2016.org) in Bangkok, Thailand, mid-November.
Widely recognised as the leading global event in the field of physical activity, South Africa will be one of 39 countries presenting our report card results at this conference and discussing on a global platform whether our children’s fundamental rights are being met.
Professor Vicki Lambert, who heads up UCT’s Division of Exercise Science and Sports Medicine, based at the Sports Science Institute of SA (SSISA), has spearheaded the Healthy Active Kids SA (HAKSA) report card initiative – with the first report card released in 2007, followed by the 2010 and 2014 versions.
This year the HAKSA Report Card team was comprised of 33 authorities in physical education, exercise science, nutrition, public health and journalism. This group assessed peer-reviewed manuscripts and “grey” literature in order to assign appropriate grades to different indicators of South African children’s health.
The array of physical activity and nutrition indicators include overall physical activity levels; organised sport participation; active and outdoor play; family and peer influences; school; community and national government policy; overweight and under-nutrition; fruit and vegetable intake; policies and school nutrition programmes. Grades assigned to an indicator ranged from an A to an F.
“There is plenty of research showing the importance of physical activity in children for normal growth and development and in preventing obesity and other lifestyle-related diseases,” says Professor Lambert. What is less recognised, is that physical activity is also an excellent platform for children to interact and develop social skills and where gender equity is promoted.
“In spite of all these benefits – children’s physical activity levels are on the decline – with the poor and vulnerable most at risk. In a national survey, less than half the adolescents were physically active enough to derive health benefits and overweight and obesity in children of all ages was on the rise.”
Watch this space for all the details of the 2016 HAKSA report card with a Cape Town and Johannesburg launch planned for early December. At least in Cape Town we are trying to encourage kids to be physically active and healthy with our Move for your Health campaign leading up to the MySchool Move for your Health 6km Fun Run/Walk event on Sunday October 30.
Visit https://www.ssisa.com/project/2016-move- health/ for all the details.
Kathleen McQuaide is from SSISA
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