A NEW STUDY has revealed that risk factors for heart disease can be found in Irish children as young as 10 years old.
The study showed that over a quarter of children were overweight or obese and despite relatively good fitness levels, activity levels were low with less than half of the group participating in the recommended one hour a day.
In the tests on 102 children at a primary school in Dublin, six had elevated cholesterol levels, five had higher blood pressure than normal and sixteen showed “clustering” of cardiovascular disease risk factors.
Researchers said the risk is greater for children who are inactive.
It has been suggested that schools should dedicate more time to physical education to keep children active but with recent cuts to resources others have said it is the responsibility of parents to ensure their children get enough exercise.
But what do you think? Should schools increase the amount of time spent on physical education?
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
have your say