There is growing interest in nutrition and exercise in Iowa , especially as they relate to childhood obesity. To learn more about these issues for children in Iowa , parents were asked about the eating and exercise practices of their children. Almost 9 out of 10 children usually or always eat breakfast (86%). Younger children were more likely to eat breakfast every day than older children (Figure 9). Just over two-thirds of children (69%) don’t drink soda on an average day. About another quarter (23%) drink one serving per day, and 9% drink 2 or more servings per day. Older children drink more soda than younger children (Figure 10).

Figure 9. Percent of Iowa children who ‘usually’ or ‘always’
eat breakfast, by age category

 

Figure 10. Daily soda consumption of Iowa children, by age category

Parents report that over one-third of children do moderate activities such as brisk walking, bicycling, or yard work for at least 30 minutes every day. Forty percent of children do vigorous, heart-rate-increasing activities at least 4 times per week.

 

Sedentary activities such as watching television or videos, playing video games, and using computers have been raised as a factor affecting childhood obesity, as these prevent children from doing physical activities. Among the 90% of children who watch some television daily, 2 hours was the average time spent watching daily. Over half of children watch over 2 hours of television, videos, or movies each day. Fifty-eight percent of children use the computer or play video games daily, with an average time of 1.5 hours. Almost 20% of children in Iowa play video games or use computers for at least 2 hours daily.

 

Children who watch less television or videos are more likely to have parents reporting their weight to be ‘the right amount’ or ‘too little’ (Figure 11).

 

Figure 11. Parental report of Iowa children’s weight status,
by daily hours of television/videos watched