Couch-potato kids are biggest child health problem in the US, adults say

'Not enough exercise' cited as top children's health concern, obesity second, according to U-M's National Poll on Children's Health annual top 10 list.

ANN ARBOR, Mich. - Adults across the U.S. rate not getting enough exercise as the top health concern for children in 2012, according to a new University of Michigan C.S. Mott Children's Hospital National Poll on Children's Health.

In the poll's annual top 10 list, a nationwide sample of adults were asked to identify the top 10 biggest health concerns for kids in their communities. For the first time, not enough exercise was rated by most adults at the top of the list (39 percent). That was followed closely by childhood obesity (38 percent) and smoking and tobacco use (34 percent).

"Childhood obesity remains a top concern, and adults know it is certainly linked to lack of exercise," says Matthew M. Davis M.D., M.A.P.P., director of the C.S. Mott Children's Hospital National Poll on Children's Health.

Read the full article here here: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2012-08/uomh-cka082012.php