Mom frets over toys that inhibit activity

I’m sweating out this holiday season because my children aren’t -- sweating.

As a health writer, I’m keenly aware of the weight problems among U.S. children. I’m also the mother of two children who love nothing more than computers and television, and who, on one recent evening, devoured two dozen chocolate chip cookies between them. Now, my 12-year-old daughter has put a motorized scooter at the top of her Christmas list.

To me, buying her a motorized scooter would be like buying my husband a leather Barcalounger with a built-in beer holder and pizza tray.

The message would be: Don’t exercise, even when you’re playing outdoors. Don’t expend any energy. Don’t sweat. Add the electric scooter to the DVDs, CDs and PlayStation games that usually appear under the Christmas tree and it’s shaping up to be a sedentary New Year.

Wouldn’t it be better if the gifts helped to shape up the kids?

“If we buy her an electric scooter, she’ll never ride her Razor or her bike,” I tell my husband. The Razor is her traditional, foot-powered scooter that’s collecting dust in the garage along with the bike, jump rope and basketball.

A motorized scooter won’t give you any exercise, I explain to my daughter, Janie. “Well, you want your kids to have fun, right?” pleads Janie, who, it should be noted, is not overweight but whose current favorite leisure-time pursuit is watching “SpongeBob SquarePants.”

I don’t think I’m alone on this sit-or-fit gift dilemma. With 15% of U.S. children overweight, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, this holiday shopping season may foster the same kind of guilt in parents as they experience at the McDonald’s drive-through. The experts tell us, of course, that child weight problems are caused by a combination of poor food choices and too little exercise.

Several studies in recent years, for example, have found a correlation between the amount of time kids spend watching TV and their weight. The average 9- to 13-year-old devotes 4 1/2 hours a day to screen time (television, video games or computer), according to federal statistics.

“It’s out of control,” says Janet Collins, a child health expert at the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta. “Parents have to monitor screen time and set limits. Some of the studies have found that, just by turning the TV off, kids become more active.”

But unplugging the TV and putting roller skates under the Christmas tree won’t necessarily set your child on the path to fitness, says Alan Smith, a professor of health and kinesiology at Purdue University. “If you provide them with the means to be active, that should be helpful,” he says. “But it won’t guarantee anything.”

Smith’s research, as well as other studies, suggests that the amount of physical activity a child gets has more to do with the people -- not the things -- surrounding the child. “Parents can serve as role models for their kids,” he says. “So, arguably, you should be doing things with your kids. If you tell your kids, ‘Hey, you should be active,’ and you’re inside watching TV, you look like a hypocrite.”

Experts aren’t sure how much parents can influence their kids’ physical activity based on what gifts they choose for holidays, birthdays or other occasions, but there are some guidelines. Toddlers and young children, for example, are bursting with energy and typically don’t need to be convinced to run around. Gifts that help build strength and coordination, such as bikes and balls, can help establish a habit of physical activity for younger children, experts say.

From ages 9 to 13, the so-called tween years when children tend to become more sedentary, parents can have a major influence on kids’ fitness, says Collins. “Kids at this age still want to spend time with their parents and have their attention,” she says. “If the parent will play with the child, toss a Frisbee with them. The child will enjoy it more.”

Studies show that by the teen years, it may be tough to motivate sedentary kids. Exercise equipment, a gym membership or outdoors recreational gear might get teens moving, experts say.

Collins advises parents to think creatively when shopping for gifts.

If your child doesn’t enjoy traditional sports, such as basketball and soccer, then don’t go there. Buy a music CD that will encourage dancing, such as hip-hop, which is popular with many kids, she suggests. Or select inexpensive outdoor toys that will involve family and friends in the activity.

Dr. Naomi Neufeld, a Los Angeles pediatric endocrinologist, recalls asking one patient, a boy who had lost a lot of weight, what he was doing for exercise.

“He said he found a pogo stick at a garage sale, and he thought it was the most amazing thing,” she said. “There are these odd and quirky toys that maybe it’s time for us to rediscover.”

The holidays, in fact, “are the perfect time to focus on fitness and relationships,” says Neufeld, medical director of KidShape, a weight-management program with locations in Los Angeles and elsewhere. “Look for things that your child is already doing that they seem to have developed a fancy for,” she suggests.

For example, a family that recently vacationed in Hawaii might purchase snorkeling gear for holiday gifts. Kids who enjoyed a recent camping or hiking trip may enjoy receiving a compass, hiking boots or a disposable camera for their next outing.

Remember that most kids’ wish lists reflect toys that have been suggested to them by advertisers, Neufeld says.

“The way children choose what they want for Christmas is absolutely amazing to me,” she says. “It’s based on what they see on television. Advertising bypasses parents and goes directly to kids.”

Parents also might want to check out the December issue of Consumer Reports, which published a buying guide on toys that get kids moving.

The magazine, published by Consumers Union, rated several fitness gift ideas as “very good” choices. These included the BeamO Flying Hoop, a $25 lightweight hoop that flies like a large Frisbee (several similar lightweight flying hoops and saucers are on the market); the Balance Board 510, a $60 seesaw-like wooden board atop a rolling cylinder that requires coordination; and the $20 Dart Ball 50055, a game that uses tennis balls and a Velcro-covered dart board.

Unfortunately, most of the other toys for an active lifestyle were rated only good or fair. These included: a variation of a jump rope in which a ball that is attached to a cuff on the user’s ankle is maneuvered in circles, a Twister game featuring music and dance steps, and a children’s weightlifting bench, treadmill and stationary exercise bike.

Somehow, I doubt my kids would jump for joy if they saw a Kids Start Walking Treadmill under the tree.

As for me, I’ve decided to buy the BeamO Flying Hoop. I may pick up a Balance Board 510 along the way.

Janie will have to buy the motorized scooter for herself -- when she’s 18.