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Play And Health Risks: • help regulate body weight
• lead to increased bone density and mineralisation
• favourably influence body fatness
• lead to improved ability to use fat for energy
• help regulate blood pressure
(sources: HEA 1997; Armstrong and Welsman 1997; Malina and Bouchard 1991; Fentem et al. 1988).
Others have pointed to the contribution that physical play and health risks associated with a sedentary lifestyle are felt among all age groups, including the youngest. Moreover, if it is the case that there is a marked decrease in activity with age (for example, cf. Heartbeat Wales 1987), a further cause for concern becomes apparent.
This chapter has identified a number of causes for concern with regard to children's current levels of health and physical activity. It has been suggested that conditions of modern society, including media, transport patterns and physical environment, have led to a steady, consistent and measurable reduction in opportunities for physical play in young children, and that this reduction in play opportunities is a significant factor in the growing health concerns.
In 1968 the Public Health Service was reorganized into three separate health agencies: the Health Services and Mental Health Administration, the National Institutes of Health, and the Consumer Protection and Environmental Health -Service, including the Food and Drug Administration, one of the agencies originally transferred into the Federal Security Agency in 1939. These three health agencies are directed by the assistant secretary for health and scientific affairs, who is aided by the surgeon general of the Public Health Service. |
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