Teach Your Children the VALUE of Exercise

Evidence suggests that behaviors established at a young age persist
in adulthood. If you're a parent, you probably believe the evidence
-- that's why you don't want your children "picking up bad habits"
from other children, or hanging out with "the wrong crowd."

But this might not be quite accurate, at least not when we consider
a potential "good" behavior -- physical activity. According to a
recent study, simply increasing the amount of exercise as a child
doesn't necessarily mean that your children will exercise as
adults. The study compared two adult groups: one that received five
hours of physical education weekly for six years during primary
school, and a group that received only the standard physical
activity requirements (about 40 minutes per week).

Questionnaires completed by the groups showed that childhood
physical activity did not have a significant effect on attitudes
toward, frequency of, or intentions to exercise as adults. The
authors believe that it may be consistent exposure to the process
of exercise and to an overall health-oriented program in childhood
may be a more important contributor to positive exercise/fitness
patterns in adulthood.

Don't just encourage (or pressure) your children to participate in
sports. Teach your children the value of staying healthy and
active, and schedule regular visits for them with your family
chiropractor. The lessons they learn could last a lifetime.

Trudeau F, Laurencelle L, Tremblay J, et al. Daily primary school
physical education: effects on physical activity during adult life.
Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 1999: Vol. 31, No.1,
pp111-117.