Dancing Your Way to Better Health and Fitness With Dance Revolution

[judith pitt]

The nation's raging epidemic of childhood obesity is losing ground to
the unexpected benefits of a video game...Dance Dance Revolution
(DDR). This video game is so effective as a weapon in the war against
childhood obesity that schools are adopting it in ever increasing
numbers, following the example set by West Virginia.
Video games have long been the whipping boy for a long list of health
problems, including creating the bulging waistline and promoting lack
of exercise among the nation's youth. Dance Dance Revolution is
turning that perception around and backing it up with steady weight
loss and exercise that is great fun for our children.
In the United States, childhood obesity has become a serious public
health concern. The obesity rates, over the past 30 years, for have
nearly tripled for children aged 2 to 5, rising from 5% to 14%. As the
children grow older, the increased rates for obese children triples
from 5% to 17% for ages 12 to 19 and quadruples for children aged 6 to
11. That's approximately 9 million overweight children risking
diabetes and high blood pressure. Not a pretty picture.
Some states are battling this epidemic by replacing the usual exercise
classes and team sports that kids don't like with this captivating
Dance Revolution video game that appeals to media-savvy youths. They
stand on mats in front of a TV that throbs with bright colors and move
to the beat of some modern music. This up-to-the-minute video system
gets kids on their feet and exercising without realizing it. They are
having fun.
A couple of years ago, West Virginia created a pilot project and
outfitted 20 public schools with DDR game machines. That project was
so successful that the state is planning to eventually outfit all 753
public schools and get more than 280,000 students on their feet and
moving to the beat. Other states are taking notice and planning to put
their own program in place.
Originating as a party game, DDR can give adults a reason to get off
the couch and improve their own health considerably. Those health
statistics mentioned above are even more serious and possibly
inevitable risks for adults who do not exercise. So, join your kids
and live longer.
http://groups.google.com/group/dancejag