75 Percent of U.S. Kids Do Not Exercise Enough

Only one out of four U.S. children get the recommended hour or more of moderate to vigorous activity daily, according to the latest Youth Fitness Survey by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This survey joins the many other studies on the decline in physical activity among our nation’s youth.

"It's definitely very concerning to see that our kids are engaging in such a limited amount of physical activity each day when we are still battling [an obesity epidemic]," Stephen Pont, MD, an Austin pediatrician and member of the Texas Medical Association’s (TMA’s) Committee on Child and Adolescent Health told NPR.

Childhood obesity in the U.S. has reached 17 percent ― 12.5 million kids aged 2 to 19 years, reports NPR. To fight this epidemic, TMA recommends school-aged children receive an hour of daily physical activity, at least 30 minutes of which should be in a school setting. Exercise, combined with nutrition education and parental involvement, can reverse the epidemic and create a healthier future for U.S. kids.