School’s Role in Obesity Prevention

Abstract

Fast food, advanced transportation, and behind the desk jobs characterize the lifestyle of the majority of Americans. Unfortunately, this lifestyle has resulted in one of America’s worst epidemics: obesity. In 2000, over 15% of Americans aged 6-19 were obese/overweight. In 2020, this statistic grew tremendously, when obesity was prevalent in 22.2% of people aged 12 to 19-years old in America alone (CDC 2022). In an effort to battle obesity, government and societies have turned to schools to be the firsthand prevention for the pandemic. This has been evident in past national and state legislation regarding what students eat at lunch. However, the focus of these actions has been on school food, but the importance of exercise within schools has been overlooked. Using a survey, the aim of this research is to analyze the exercise patterns of high school students in an Orange County Public School. The findings conclude that about 30% of students are getting the recommended amount of exercise through the school each day, but most of these students are doing so through extra-curricular sports. Therefore, the students who are getting enough exercise are doing s because they want to, not because the school is making them. Consequently, schools need to play a bigger role in challenging obesity by requiring more mandatory exercise for students.