Today, Mrs. Obama announced an effort to combat childhood obesity. It feels like an enormous problem -- no pun intended -- and I hope she can get kids moving and slimming down.
If any public figure can do it, maybe she can. She's a strong role model: she feeds her kids a healthy vegetable-laden diet, she planted a garden with school kids ... those arms!
Full disclosure: My kids are slim, but I'm not about to wag my finger at others. Because I wish I could be as good a role model in my house as Michelle Obama is in the People's House. I do not exercise nearly as much as I should. Nutritious meals too often fall by the wayside -- because we are juggling five or six weeknight sports practices. We've got too much junk food in the cabinet.
I wasn't always this way. For my son's first birthday, I made him a cake that involved wheat germ and unsweetened apple sauce. It didn't taste very good. Maybe that traumatic experience turned my son into the picky eater he remains today. My daughter, however, is a great eater. Go figure.
I do think Mrs. Obama is on to something: That it takes a multi-pronged approach to fight a significant health issue.
It starts with parents, but communities and schools must play a role, too, in the form of healthy lunches and fun physical activities for kids.
Though last week I wrote how PE in middle school was a waste of time for some kids (mine specifically), my thoughtful collegue Lois Solomon disagreed. Believe me, if my kids weren't already active, they would be taking PE.
I just think all the fun has been taken out of it physical activity. Parents are afraid to let their kids run or bike around the neighborhood for fear of being snatched. Sports programs have become so competitive they weed out everyone but the very best.
One bright spot locally is the opening of a new YMCA at Lauderhill Middle School. This is an innovate partnership between Broward County Schools and Waste Management, which gave a $75,0000 grant. It's the first YMCA in a public school in Broward.
The new facility is now open to teachers and faculty and this summer will be open to students and the community. If it becomes anything like the Y I grew up with, it will be a safe place for kids to try all sorts of fun, physical, non-competitive activities.
Hopefully, Mrs. Obama can inspire more of these kinds of innovative programs.
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ABOUT THE YMCA OF BROWARD COUNTY:
The mission of the YMCA is to put Judeo-Christian principles into practice through programs that build healthy spirit, mind and body for all. The goal of YMCA of Broward County is to enrich the lives of kids in the community. Its programs teach young people the YMCA core values, which are caring, honesty, respect and responsibility. Through a variety of fun and rewarding activities, they also develop valuable skills while gaining confidence and self-esteem. |
