Byline: Post staff report
U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Donna Shalala came to Cincinnati today to urge more girls to participate in sports as she released a report showing widespread benefits of an early start in sports.
''Sports and physical activity participation can help girls avoid
the dangerous mine fields of adolescence and reach their full potential,'' said Ms. Shalala.
''We've come a long way in breaking down barriers for girls, but now we need to work together to help get girls off the sideines and onto the fields.''
Ms. Shalala came to Cincinnati, where the NCAA women's basketball Final Four tournament begins tonight, to release a report of the President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports.
The report, ''Physical Activity and Sport in the Lives of Girls,'' was the first government study
that took an interdisciplinary approach to examine the impact of sports and physical activity on all aspects of a girl's life.
The report found:
Girls' early involvement in physical activity and sport can reduce their likelihood of developing a number of chronic diseases and unhealthy conditions, such as coronary heart disease and high cholesterol.
Regular physical activity can help girls build greater peak bone mass, thereby reducing adult risk of osteoporosis.
Exercise and sport participation can enhance mental health by offering adolescent girls positive feelings about body image, improved self-esteem, tangible experiences of competency and success, and increased self-confidence. It can also help with academic achievement.
Poverty substantially limits many girls' access to physical activity and sports.
The report was part of the U.S. Health and Human Services' ''Girl Power!'' campaign to encourage and help girls aged 9-14 make the most of their lives.
