A group of Canadian corporations, sports leagues and medical groups have banded together to encourage the country's provincial governments to bring more physical activity back into Canada’s schools.
The initiative, called Active At School, is calling for schools to integrate one hour a day of exercise for kids before, during or after school. And it says it's got the resources and expertise to help make that happen.
The list of 60 groups involved include the Canadian Medical Association, the NHL, the CFL, sports broadcaster TSN and corporations such as Canadian Tire and Mark's.
The group says it can use its expertise in health, sports and education to get the plan into action, and can combine their resources and marketing channels to keep the issue top-of-mind with government leaders and education decision-makers.
According to research, nine out of 10 Canadian children are not getting the recommended one hour per day of physical activity that most health experts recommend.
While surveys have found that the vast majority of Canadian families know that being active is important, they have difficulty doing it because of a lack of time or financial resources.
"Canada’s children and youth are more inactive today than at any time in our country’s history – a fact articulated by numerous studies and clearly recognized by Canada’s concerned parents," the group said in a statement.
Active at School notes that not only does regular physical activity improve health, it also increases confidence and self-esteem, improves concentration in class and can help improve academic performance. As well, sports can provide life lessons and help with building teamwork and goal-setting.
“I always find it strange that we are looking for that secret sauce that makes our kids smarter, happier and gives them better self-esteem. Well, we’ve got it – it’s called exercise,” said Dr. Mike Evans, a staff physician at Toronto's St. Michael's Hospital, who supports the program, said in a statement.
“It is great when kids are active outside of school -- and many are -- but just like adults, if we want to change behaviour, we need to think about their daily habits and make it as easy as possible for new habits to be formed."
Canada's Minister of State for Sport, Bal Gosal, applauded the initiative.
"Physical activity plays an important role in the health, well-being and quality of life of all Canadians," Gosal said in a statement.
"The Active At School campaign is an excellent example of how innovative partnerships can complement ongoing federal efforts to promote healthy living and prevent chronic disease."
