WASHINGTON, Dec. 26 (UPI) -- U.S. families -- especially children -- should spend more time outdoors, the National Wildlife Federation recommends.
Kevin Coyle, vice president of education at the National Wildlife Federation, says by making the Be Out There Resolution to spend more time outside in 2010, Americans will be making a resolution that's both good for their families and fun to keep.
Outdoor time significantly enhances children's physical and mental well-being but today's kids don't get much, Coyle says.
"In the last two decades, childhood has moved indoors. While previous generations ran around in nature until called in for dinner, modern children spend only four to seven minutes outdoors per day," Coyle says in a statement.
Research in the fields of public health, psychology and medicine has documented the toll an "indoor childhood" takes on kids.
Coyle says children reap wide-ranging and numerous benefits when encouraged to interact with nature in an outdoor setting -- including better eyesight, enhanced physical fitness, less obesity, increased classroom preparedness and lower levels of stress and depression.
