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Focus on kids’ fitness

The Spokesman-Review

The debate over health care presents an opportunity to take a closer look at children’s health. With childhood obesity rates skyrocketing, emphasis should be placed on teaching kids how to become more physically active. Overweight children have increased risk for heart disease in adulthood, the leading cause of death in Washington.

Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers can help improve the health of children by co-sponsoring the Fitness Integrated with Teaching Kids Act, which amends the No Child Left Behind Act to encourage schools to increase physical education and give children tools they need to stay fit and healthy through adulthood. Studies have shown a link between increased physical fitness and academic performance.

As the youth market director for the American Heart Association, I talk with educators every day about the direction our children are heading in terms of health. Almost one of every four kids between grades eight and 12 in Washington state are overweight or obese.

A head start on physical fitness to reduce risk for obesity-related diseases should be a top priority as we seek to reform health care. I encourage Rep. McMorris Rodgers to join her colleagues to help kids lead healthier lives, learn more effectively and achieve more academically.

Melissa Brown

Spokane



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