Caitlin Keely S.

Ong 11207760 Reaction Paper on The Bad, the Ugly, and the Good Health: an issue that has been around for ages. Obesity, malnourishment, calories, fats are just some of the words that usually pops into ones mind upon hearing this crisis. I must admit that this issue no longer make the same impact to the children and teens of this generation than it did to the previous youth. Yes, we may hear our parents constantly telling us what and what not to eat, to stop playing video games and play outside instead, to quit on being a potato head all the time, etc. but, we must admit, we usually brush these off almost immediately and with their busy schedule at work they dont have time to scold us, repeatedly. Being in school or day care for at least 6-7 hours doesnt help either. Luckily, Ive read from an article by Dr. Stephen C. Jefferies, entitled The Bad, the Ugly, and the Good which was published last February 2006 that public school physical educators in America are doing more than their part in driving todays youth to the right path of a nutritious lifestyle. that Americas physical educators are on the front line of efforts to combat the health crisis facing our nations children and youth. Seriously, it has been six years since this was published and I hear about it just now? Well, it was intended for an American audience but I still wished my teachers back in high school knew something about this. It would have been fun (and healthy!) to have physical activities inserted during our classroom sessions. An hour of P.E. subject a week is just not enough against at least 35 hours of lecture classes. Filipino children nowadays could use something like this especially, those who are privileged enough to have their own television sets, X-BOX 360, play station, PSP, and the likes. A change in their everyday routine will be of good cause not only to them but also to their family. I believe that the article is right when it says We need to promote habitual physical activity and good eating from birth. Single-track efforts are said to be not enough to battle out this crisis. The society a child lives in is also an important factor in developing proper nutrition and diet. A boy with friends who always drink sodas during recess will also do the same. A girl whose clique is starving themselves just to look like the skinny model on the cover of a magazine will follow the lead. It may not be so evident today, but if we act now, rest assured our future is clear.