Screen-Free Week fits the bill, children

THERE was a time when a screen was something you saw at the cinema, or that large glass thing in front of your steering wheel which keeps the weather out.

Now it’s a small glass thing – or you may have several of different sizes- to which you have to remain glued all day long.

The only thing that’s being exercised are your thumbs and exhausted eyeballs.

Parents, guilty of same, worry about this for their children.

Half a century ago child obesity was a vanishingly small statistic. Now almost a third of children are overweight or obese.

The picture can’t wholly be blamed on screen-abuse, it’s more complicated than that. But remember those old playground games?

Turns out they burned a significant number of calories.

Children could eat like horses and stay thin and healthy – if you keep the junk food out of the equation..

Screen-Free Week this week sets out to redress the inactivity balance with devicefree fun and games all over the country. So, what if the old playground games were to make a comeback – mandatory even, or by social prescription?

Here’s the calorie and health dividend: Skipping: 430 calories for 30 minutes. So you wouldn’t be skipping for 30 minutes on the trot, but in those days children would be playing outside morning, afternoon, lunch time and in the evenings.

Even if they only skipped for a few minutes each time, it adds up and fits the bill of current fitness buzz of High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) where short, sharp bursts of intense training are followed by the same length of time again, or longer, resting.

Hula hooping: up to 200 calories a half hour. The health benefits are impressive, ranging from improving cardiovascular fitness, whittling away body fat and inches and improving the balance.

Hopscotch: up to 450 calories for 30 minutes. Leaping and jumping, counting, chanting – it’s not just good exercise, it’s sociable and fun, another benefit of screen-free time.

Playing tig/tag: up to 500 calories in 30 minutes. It’s not just running about.

Caught up in the game, you barely notice you’re pumping your heart rate and developing a variety of physical skills including movement, agility, balance, co-ordination and spatial awareness.

Playing video games: up to 100 calories in 30 mins and looking at your phone: up to 50 calories an hour. That says it all really, doesn’t it? The organisers of Screen-Free Week state: “A healthy childhood depends on a surprising thing: play!

“Through creative play, kids explore their physical world, build their curiosity, and expand their imaginations.

“Not only does Screen-Free Week allow people to enjoy time away from news feeds, targeted ads, and autoplay videos, but it gives families and communities an opportunity to come together and connect with each other.”