The report, drawn up by the Wilhelmina Children's Hospital together with RIVM and Kenniscentrum Sport, provides an evidence-informed assessment, based on the best available data, of indicators in the field of physical activity for healthy children and young people and children and young people with a chronic medical condition. If you think that playing sports is sufficient for children to achieve the recommended daily amount of physical activity, you will be disappointed. Although playing sports contributes significantly to the daily amount of physical activity, it is not enough to meet the physical activity guidelines. More is needed for that!
The report shows that Dutch young people receive a passing grade for participation in sports and active transportation to school. However, half of Dutch children exercise far too little. There has been a significant decline in active play in recent years in particular. Our infrastructure and facilities for physical activity are excellent; that is not the problem. The big question is how we can get Dutch children away from their screens and actively playing again.
The good news is that the majority of Dutch children participate in sports. It is particularly important to prevent young people between the ages of 12 and 17 from dropping out of sports and physical activity. This can be done through sports activities in the neighborhood or via clubs, but schools can also play an important role by offering appealing physical education classes and extracurricular sports activities. It is also important for parents to set a good example and do more sports and physical activities together with their children. “Insufficient physical activity and too much sitting are placing an enormous time bomb under the health of the future Dutch population,” says Dr. Tim Takken, exercise physiologist at the Wilhelmina Children's Hospital and initiator of the Dutch Physical Activity Report Card for Children and Young People. “Too many children get too little vigorous exercise. This is not only bad for the heart, blood vessels and fitness, but insufficient physical activity also has negative consequences for academic performance, healthy weight and behavior,” says Dr. Takken. Playing sports alone is therefore not enough! At least one hour of physical activity every day should be on the agenda for all children and young people. Time to unplug from the screen!
About the Report Card
In the United States and Canada, there has been a tradition for more than 10 years of producing an annual ‘report card’ on the national performance of young people's physical activity and sedentary behavior. In 2012, the initiative was taken to do this worldwide. Forty-nine countries around the world have taken up the challenge, including the Netherlands. This project makes a global comparison between countries possible, and the participating countries can learn from each other's successes. The Dutch 2018 Physical Activity Report Card for children and young people can be downloaded here.