The Irish Government must invest in long-term programmes of physical education in our schools if the rising problems of obesity and overweight are to be seriously tackled, according to a PE expert from University College Cork.
Director of the Bachelor of Education in Sports Studies and Physical Education, Dr Julia Walsh claims the schools cannot help address these issues unless the Government supports them and funds PE as a core subject.
"In some schools here, students only take PE in the junior cycle and, even then, it may only be for 35 minutes a week. Unless a teacher has a double period, they do not get a lot of time to engage with students. Engagement in PE classes in our schools can be as low as 15 per cent."
Dr Walsh says children and teenagers should be engaging in at least 100 minutes of physical activity a week - either 20 minutes of intense activity or 30 minutes of medium activity four to five times a week, including cardiovascular exercise and strength training.
Where once families and communities took a lot more responsibility for their children's involvement in physical activity, Dr Walsh points out that this must now be embedded in the education system.
She explains that in her native Australia, schools are statutorily obliged to provide a minimum level of physical activity every week and PE is a core part of the curriculum.
"We have got a lot more structural issues here than in Australia. One major issue is the timetables and overcrowded curriculum of our schools. The Government needs to take ownership of this issue. In Victoria, Australia, schools must demonstrate that they are providing 100 minutes of PE in primary and secondary schools every week if they are to get funding."
Dr Walsh says the changes in Ireland have to be pushed by people at local, community and Government level. "At the moment, there are 300,000 children in Ireland obese or overweight and this is going up by 10,000 annually. One in five adults is obese in Ireland, two in five are overweight and we have the fourth highest level of obesity and overweight in the EU. Ninety-five per cent of this problem could be fixed with a change in lifestyle, we've got to make it easier for people to make the healthy choice," she says.
With 31 per cent of energy intake now occurring outside the home, Dr Walsh highlights the need to educate parents about food and nutrition and to provide support for healthy eating programmes in schools, including school canteens.
"We need to be brave enough to decide we can do something now rather than waiting and watching other people and following. Ireland has been brave enough to lead in a number of areas, are we brave enough to take the lead in preventative health and look after our citizens? A lot of those citizens will not be there to vote 20 years down the track, we are already looking at second-generation obesity."
With obesity very much "in our face" as a problem, Dr Walsh warns against neglecting other major health issues such as mental health and substance abuse issues. She points out that PE teachers often find themselves responsible for teaching health or covering health components in their discipline area.
"Traditionally the physical education teacher has been well equipped to teach specific areas of health relating to physical activity. However, more holistic approaches to health and wellness have required teachers to engage in further study and professional development," she says.
UCC has launched a lecture series to explore the way forward for sport in the Irish community. The series was kicked off last month by former Ireland manager Jack Charlton who addressed the topic of building successful teams.
