News - News releases
October 4, 2010
Pennsylvania schools join International Walk to School Day Celebration
Walking and biking to school can help children and adolescents accumulate recommended 60 minutes per day of physical activity
HERSHEY, Pa. – Students, parents, teachers, and community partners throughout the commonwealth will be "walking the walk" on Wednesday, October 6 in support of International Walk to School Day.
International Walk to School Day brings together millions of walkers from around the world in hopes of reversing declining trends in children walking to school and improving daily activity rates of today's youth, plus improving poor air quality and reducing congestion on the roads.
The Center for Nutrition and Activity Promotion at Penn State Hershey Children's Hospital (Center) supports schools' Walk to School Day efforts by providing promotional materials and technical assistance to help schools make walking and bicycling a priority.
Donna Kephart, Center executive director, explains, "physical activity of any kind is great for kids, but walking or biking to school is a wonderful opportunity for parents and kids to spend quality time together and promote a healthier lifestyle for the whole family."
The Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans recommend children between the ages of 6 and 17 get at least 60 minutes of physical activity each day1. Although a survey2 of 960 Pennsylvania schools conducted by the Center in the spring of 2009 found that 90 percent of schools offer a supervised walking program on a daily basis, research3 indicates that less than 15 percent of students between the ages of 5 and 15 walk to or from school – compared to 48 percent of children that walked or bicycled to school in 1969.
1U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Physical Activity Guidelines. Available: http://www.cdc.gov/physicalactivity/everyone/guidelines/index.html.
2Center for Nutrition and Activity Promotion at Penn State Hershey Children's Hospital, nrgBalance Zone State Report 2009 - 2009. Available: http://www.nrgbalance.org/schools/campaign-profiles.cfm.
3U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Kids Walk-to-School: Then and Now-Barrier and Solutions. Available: http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/kidswalk/then_and_now.htm.
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The Center for Nutrition and Activity Promotion at Penn State Hershey Children's Hospital is committed to helping youth and families in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania learn how to eat well, engage in regular physical activity, and incorporate healthy habits into their daily life. For more information about the Center and its programs, please
visit www.nrgbalance.org.
“The stellar interaction between the Center and administrators at six PA public schools led to a very successful week-long health ride. I enjoyed working with the Center and would highly recommend them as partners in any future projects.”
