While Aussie kids are looking forward to some well-deserved time off, research has revealed that too much rest and relaxation could create health problems, with holidays the prime time for excessive weight gain.
Conducted by the Murdoch Childrenโs Research Institute (MCRI) in conjunction with the University of South Australiaโs Alliance for Research in Exercise, Nutrition and Activity, the โLife on Holidaysโ study assessed changes to childrenโs fitness and fatness during the holidays.ย
It found that the following factors led to childrenโs body fat increasing at a faster pace than in-school periods.ย
Specifically, children:ย
- slept 12 minutes less per dayย
- spent 12 minutes less per being physically activeย
- spent an additional 70 minutes per day on screen time.ย
Lead researcher, MCRIโs Professor Tim Olds, said promoting physical activities for children in the school holidays could help address unhealthy weight gain and declining fitness, noting that in Australia, one in four children and teenagers are overweight or obese.ย ย
โLike all of us, kids (and their parents) deserve some holiday downtime, but the way they spend their time on holidays is very different from the school term โ and in ways which is not always good for childrenโs health,โ he said.ย
โOn school holidays, kids are significantly less active than when theyโre at school, and this translates into higher body fat percentages and lower levels of fitness.ย
โDuring the holidays, kids spend about 12 minutes less each day in moderate to vigorous physical activity โ almost an hour and a half a week โ and get more than an hourโs extra screen time each day. They also spend an extra 20 minutes each day in transport, and a quarter of an hour more per day just chilling.ย
โItโs not surprising to find that kids get fatter at a faster rate on school holidays compared to school term and lose a lot of fitness. If kids spent the whole year on holidays, their percentage of body fat would increase by about 4% more each year than if they had no holidays, and their fitness would decline by about 10% each year.ย
โKids who are not getting enough exercise and movement have a greater risk of developing health issues, such as cardiovascular disease and Type 2 diabetes later in life, so itโs important that we encourage kids to stay active and embrace a balance of downtime and exercise.โย
The two-year study focused on more than 150 children aged 9-10 years, with data collected at the beginning and end of Terms 1 and 4 in both Grades 4 and 5.ย ย
Co-researcher, UniSAโs Dr Dot Dumuid, said that one solution could be for Australia to adopt the American institution of summer camps and holiday programs to improve kids’ use of time during holidays.ย
โA defining factor of school holidays is that theyโre unstructured โ they can get food from the fridge when they want it, and generally have access to computers and devices โ and thereโs no doubt that screen time plays a key role in increased sedentary time during school holidays,โ Dr Dumuid said.ย
โWhen you compare this to the structure of a school day, where kids have a prepared lunch, and scheduled PE lessons and playtimes, itโs vastly different.ย
โIn contrast, summer camps and holiday programs get a big tick of approval as they provide kids with physical activities in a semi-structured way. Already popular in America, summer camps may be worth investigating as a viable option over Australian holidays.ย
โWe all want our kids to be healthy. And while devices and TV may provide a bit of babysitting, is it really worth your childโs health?โย