Limiting children’s recreational screen time to less than two hours a day linked to better cognition

Medical X-Press – Staff Writer

Only one in 20 US children in the study met the full recommended guidelines on recreational screen time, physical activity and sleep. Limiting recreational screen time to less than two hours a day, and having sufficient sleep and physical activity is associated with improved cognition, compared with not meeting any recommendations, according to an observational study of more than 4,500 US children aged 8-11 years old published in The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health journal. (more)

In California, 2 in 3 kids fail to meet exercise standards, according to study

Medical X-Press – Venetia Lai

California’s weather encourages year-round outdoor activity. Yet just 1 in 3 children and only 1 in 5 teens in the state exercise for the one hour per day that’s recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, according to a study by the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research. (more)

Despite restaurant pledges, most kids receive unhealthy items with fast-food kids’ meals

Medical X-Press – Staff Writer

A new study of parents’ fast-food restaurant purchases for their children finds that 74 percent of kids still receive unhealthy drinks and/or side items with their kids’ meals when they visit one of the four largest restaurant chains—McDonald’s, Burger King, Wendy’s, and Subway—despite restaurants’ commitments to offer healthier options with kids’ meals. This finding is part of a new report from the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity at the University of Connecticut. (more)

How to Foster Healthy Habits in Kids — While Promoting Body Positivity

WTOP – Staff Writer

It’s no secret: The U.S. is in the grip of a childhood obesity epidemic. While some reports have suggested that rates have stabilized, a February 2018 study in Pediatrics found no such plateau. In fact, the data for kids ages 2 to 19 from 1999 to 2016 revealed increases in obesity at all ages and a sharp uptick in severe obesity among those ages 2 to 5 and girls 16 to 19. (more)

How to get your child off that couch!

Femina – Hemchhaya De

A fun fitness regimen should be part and parcel of family activities, health experts stress. Needless to say, for their children’s overall development, parents must make every effort to get them off the couch! Here’s how you can motivate them to stay fit: (more)