Exercise... Get around to it now.

Exercise isn't really anyone's favorite word, but neither is work, and both have to be done in order to maintain a healthy lifestyle.  Buying healthy food is a great way to start down the road to losing weight, or even just maintaining a healthy weight, but it isn't enough.

Mayo Clinic has a lot of great suggestions for ways to help your child, many of which concern physical activity.  I think the most important point it has is that you shouldn't expect your child to do something that you are not willing to do.  If you expect your child to exercise so that they can be healthy, you better make sure you're being healthy and exercising too.

Another major point is that exercise doesn't have to be called exercise.  Lots of kids love to play tag, go swimming, walk with their parents, or go bowling--exercise doesn't have to be a chore.  A walk is a great way to get outside and bond at the same time.  It's really okay to have fun and be healthy at the same time!

Check out the link! There is a ton of helpful information (about childhood obesity in general, not just exercise), and a lot of good suggestions.  It's a great place to go if you have questions.

Welcome!

A special welcome to all of the new readership coming to check out this Parental Health Influence blog! Most of you have seen our Health Campaign and are curious to learn more about the extent to which parents influence their child's health risk, perception and outcomes.

This campaign began as a class assignment, but has led to a strong desire to get our findings out to the public.  So here we are, creating and updating a blog that is specially designed to get information out about how parents ARE - and how they CAN - influence their children's health.  Here, we recognize that the Apple Doesn't Fall Far From The Tree, so we are committed to doing all we can to help you build a healthier you and healthier offspring.

We also try to provide information about, and links to, different community resources that can be utilized to help improve health outcomes for YOU and YOUR child.

So feel free to explore, comment, share your own research findings, and help us develop a community of parents who CARE about their children's health and are armed with the knowledge and resources to successfully do so!