Health of kids not major parental priority

OAKLAND, Calif., April 18 (UPI) -- Time spent with TV, cellphones and games, and a lack of time and money, are barriers to parents' making children's health a priority, a U.S. survey indicates.

The YMCA Family Health Snapshot of 1,630 parents of children ages 5-10 was designed to discover the barriers to healthier living. Only 15 percent of parents say they are concerned about their children's overall health.

The survey also indicates:

-- 42 percent of parents say families have too many distractions, from television, video games and cellphones, to achieving a healthy lifestyle.

-- 38 percent of parents say extracurricular activities are too expensive.

-- 38 percent say there is not enough time for them to achieve a healthy lifestyle for their children.

-- 74 percent of parents spend family time with their kids in front of the TV.

-- 93 percent of parents say participation by their children in school sports or extracurricular activities is important, but 52 percent say they have cut back to save money.

-- 74 percent of children ages 5-10 do not get the recommended 60 minutes of physical activity per day.

-- 58 percent of children ages 5-10 spend less than four days a week playing outdoors.

-- 50 percent of families play a sport together less than one day per week.

No survey details were provided.