Researchers at the University of Texas at Austin (UT) and the University of Iowa recently published a study that shows laws mandating gym classes at elementary schools aren’t doing enough to slow childhood obesity, according to a UT-issued press release.
The analysis, which was published in the peer-reviewed health care journal “The Milbank Quarterly,” explained that 24 states and Washington, D.C. passed laws between 1998 and 2016 that sought to boost the amount of time students spend in physical education (PE) or physical activity (PA), but the researchers discovered schools in those states and Washington, D.C. essentially ignored the laws.
Per the study, the states with the PE laws didn’t see a drop in children’s body mass index (BMI), overweight prevalence or obesity prevalence, the release said.
Dr. Paul von Hippel, a professor at UT’s Lyndon B. Johnson (LBJ) School of Public Affairs, said “closer oversight at schools” is necessary for the laws to work.
“Yet, even with better compliance, we estimate PE classes just don’t burn enough calories to make a noticeable impact on obesity,” von Hippel, who co-authored the study with Iowa professor Dr. David Frisvold, said, per the release.
He added that even if schools were to apply changes, PE classes alone wouldn’t properly address the obesity epidemic among youth.
“Kids can’t outrun a bad diet any more than adults can,” von Hippel said in the release. “Policies must address food and beverage consumption — not just inside schools, but outside as well.”
An article on The Hill reported that more children in the U.S. are becoming obese at younger ages.
According to The Hill, rates have tripled in the last 30 years, with researchers attributing the disturbing increase to excessive usage of electronic devices and a lack of access to healthy food in addition to the COVID-19 pandemic.
