Teaching Lifetime Health Early

In a previous blog, the topic discussed was about how physical education classes should not be reduced by any margin, because physical activity aids academic performance. In this blog, the importance of teaching students physical activities and nutritional eating habits at an early age to encourage a lifetime of health will be explained.

Variety of Physical Activities

There are plenty of physical activities that can not only be done in the gym during school, but outside of school for the rest of their lives. The essential goal of physical educators is to promote a lifetime of physical fitness and health to their students. Although it is the goal of the PE teacher to promote this healthy lifestyle choice, a student’s lifestyle is initially influenced by their upbringing. Studies have shown that lifestyles learned as children are much more likely to stay with a person into adulthood.2

Eating Habits

In order to encourage a lifestyle of nutritional eating, students should be taught what is healthy and what is unhealthy at as early as 2 or 3 years of age. The kids may want to stick to the bland, beige, starchy diet (think chicken nuggets, fries, macaroni), but this is really the time to encourage fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and beans, which all provide fiber.1 As a physical educator, not only teaching good eating habits, but practicing nutritional eating habits would help students live a healthy lifestyle.  

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Closing

One of the purposes of PE is to provide students with a variety of physical activities that they can participate in outside of school during their toddler years. The other purpose of physical education is to introduce nutritional eating habits at an early age as well. Next to be discussed, will be the differences between physical education class and athletics.

References

1NA. (2016). Childhood nutrition. Retrieved November 2, 2016 from:

https://www.healthychildren.org/English/healthy-living/nutrition/Pages/Childhood-Nutrition.aspx

2NA. (2016). Lifetime sports. Retrieved November 2, 2016 from:

https://www.healthychildren.org/English/healthy-living/sports/Pages/Lifetime-Sports.aspx