Active children - Exercise for life

THE Organisation for Economic Co-Operation (OECD) finding that a third of Irish children are exercising regularly is reassuring but not as reassuring as it might be.

The OECD found that the most active children are in Slovakia, Ireland and the United States. This has inevitable and positive health implications for those taking regular exercise.

However, there must be concern for the two out of three children who are not doing so. This concern is compounded by the fact that just one in five older children exercise regularly.

We are all aware of how obesity limits a person’s quality of life. That is why it is so important to get children into the habit of exercising regularly at an early age.