Seanad debates

Wednesday, 17 May 2017

Childhood Obesity: Statements

 

10:30 am

Photo of Grace O'SullivanGrace O'Sullivan (Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I can see the fall-off in interest among girls and young women from the age of 14 up to 18 years. The emotional and social pressures of puberty and school life as well as the big picture social pressures from magazine, popular culture and their own peer network seems to orientate to one thing, that physical activity, organised sports in particular, are not things that girls in their teens are meant to be engaged in.One of my daughters went through this phase, being interested in surfing and other sports one day and dropping them when she was in first or second year in school as social pressures tilted against her. Cycling to school is a case in point, the recent census at school project, a small survey of the travel and life patterns of young people in Ireland, showed that for every nine boys cycling to school, only one girl does so. That is an extremely low base, for example, only 1% of students in Waterford cycle to school. Young women have the desire to be healthy, but they are being held back from one of the easiest and most obvious ways of staying fit. In The Netherlands, a majority of students cycle to school, and there is a considerably lower level of childhood obesity there. This is a serious loss for our young women, and for the health of our country. Luckily, my daughter has returned to her sporting ways, and is now the secretary of the National University of Ireland, Galway, NUIG, surfing club. Many young women, perhaps most, however, do not and instead choose to focus on a much less balanced approach to health that affects their food intake and neglects exercise and physical activity. This has long-term consequences for their health.

What is at the root of this problem? Why are young women losing interest not just in competitive sports, but in other forms of physical activity, and what can we do to address it? We know anecdotally and from observation that a central part of the problem is that sports are not considered cool, or even socially acceptable as an activity for young women and girls to engage in. These social pressures are extremely difficult to quantify, but they are strong and self-reinforcing. They are supported and expanded through public pressures from media, and also through gender stereotypes and media focus. We saw only recently the Football Association of Ireland, FAI's, attitude towards Ireland's women's soccer team, that women in sport, and women's sport, cannot expect the same profile, coverage or benefits as those given to their male counterparts. Stereotypes about the role and behaviour of women are also to blame, and harder to tackle.

I hope the Minister of State will consider some of the following in her approach to the issue of obesity under discussion today: we need to understand the various reasons behind the drop off in interest in sports among girls aged between 12 and 18 years. To do this, we need to hear from this age cohort, through expanded surveys and feedback from experts, teachers and parents. We need to identify those aspects that are readily addressable, and those that are part of the more global issue of female self-image and gender stereotyping. We need to deliver physical activities in schools and community settings that are tailored to be enjoyable and attractive to girls. One of my daughters went through this phase, as I said. We need to incentivise a more positive approach to physical activity. Cycling to school is a good way to start. Car free zones around schools is a good policy response to get people walking to school and we need to look at the big picture to alter the way young women think about what it means to be a woman today, and help foster an image of engaged and healthy activity as part of a balanced lifestyle.

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