RUNNIN FOR RHETT

Obesity is an issue requiring innovative actions and dedicated organizations and individuals to resolve. The obesity epidemic is a complex issue reflecting changes to our social, economic, and built environments over decades.

Approximately, one in every nine California children, one in three teens, and over half of adults are already overweight or obese. This epidemic affects everyone, although rates are highest among Californians from lower-income households and those with disabilities. Between 40-80 percent of overweight children will become overweight adults. This is alarming because poor diet, inactivity, and obesity contribute to the risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, stroke, arthritis-related disabilities, depression, sleep disorders, and some cancers.  As a direct result of the obesity epidemic, children’s doctors are seeing a significant rise in chronic illness in children. Obese children are more than twice as likely to have type-2 diabetes as children of normal weight. This not only causes a burden on our health system but society as a whole not to mention the quality of life of the individual. California’s costs attributable to physical inactivity and obesity in 2006 were estimated at $41.2 billion. Economic estimates indicate that California could save $1.7 billion over five years by investing $10 per person per year in strategic prevention programs.

R4R's Youth Fitness Program is in alignment with the vision of the California Obesity Plan: "Californians will understand the importance of physical activity and healthy eating, and they will make healthier choices based on their understanding." We hope to expand the YFP to even more schools and individuals with the additional funds from the Sierra Health Foundation therefore, gaining greater outreach to those populations at highest risk for obesity and inactivity in the four-county region we currently serve, hoping to expand to an even larger population catchment.

Not only is childhood obesity an issue that needs to be addressed immediately but physical inactivity is a serious problem. Health-risk behaviors such as substance use, violence, and physical inactivity are consistently linked to academic failure and often affect students’ attendance, grades, test scores, and ability to pay attention. Researchers have found health is critical to academic success. Active and well-nourished children/youth have better attendance, stay in school, and are ready to learn. Research demonstrates that regular physical activity and physical fitness are associated with higher levels of academic performance.

The R4R YFP is in alignment with Team California for Healthy Kids (TCHK), a program launched by the California Department of Education (CDE) to promote healthy eating and physical activity throughout the day in schools, before and after school agencies, early childhood programs, and communities. By ingraining lifelong habits in youth at an early age of staying physically active and eating nutritiously dense food through training and education, the R4R YFP provides the underprivileged, vulnerable, at-risk youth a chance to garner academic success and lead long and healthy lives.