Children’s Physical Activities Need To Be Made Safer, Researchers Say

Many public health efforts to promote physical activity among kids neglect to advise on the risks of serious injury and ways to lower that risk, according to U.S. researchers. Popular kids’ activities – walking, bicycling, swimming, sports and playground use – are the leading cause of activity-related injury. But the researchers said that there are many behavioral, environmental and policy approaches -- e.g., encouraging use of bicycle helmets -- that have been shown to make physical activity safer for children. A program to reduce childhood injury in Sweden, for example, cut the child injury death rate in half between 1966 and 2001.