Study: Kids Don’t Move Much in Preschool

Young children may not get much physical activity in a day at preschool, a new study finds. The study included nearly 100 preschool children from 10 child-care centers. Researchers spent 4 full days at each center, watching the children. The kids also wore devices to measure their physical activity. On average, kids spent only 48 minutes a day in active physical play. About 33 minutes of that was outdoor play. About 10 minutes was led by the teacher. In all, 73% of the children’s typical day was spent sitting or lying down. About 13% was spent in light activity and 14% in moderate to vigorous activity. Experts recommend at least an hour of adult-led, structured physical activity each day for children this age. They also recommend another hour of unstructured free play. The journal Pediatrics published the study. HealthDay News wrote about it May 18.