Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise in the House today to speak to Motion No. 206.
I will begin by reading the motion:
That the Standing Committee on Health be instructed to undertake a study on the level of fitness and physical activity of youth in Canada and provide recommendations and report on: (a) strategies to increase the level of fitness and physical activity for youth; (b) the economic, social, cultural, and physical and mental health benefits associated with increased fitness and physical activity among youth; (c) the impact of increased fitness and physical activity in relation to anti-bullying; and (d) that the Committee report its findings and recommendations to the House no later than June 2019.
I am very pleased to be speaking on this topic because we know that physical fitness is very important. It is one of the key predeterminants of health. In setting the stage for this motion, let me describe the situation that exists right now in Canada.
Obesity in children has doubled since the 1970s. Obesity in adolescents has tripled in the last 30 years. More and more young people are obese, and obesity is linked directly to conditions like diabetes. We know that 11 million Canadians have diabetes or pre-diabetes. This is a very difficult condition that, as people age, becomes even worse, increasing the risks of heart attack and stroke and numerous other chronic diseases. It is important to get at the root cause and to try to eliminate obesity in children and adolescents, and physical fitness is definitely part of that. The World Health Organization has called on countries to take specific action, so I am pleased this motion has come forward today.
Going by the wisdom of my past, and my past is likely lengthier than the past of the member opposite, diet and exercise are both important parts of being physically fit. There are initiatives for healthy eating and getting the nutrients people need, which is very important. In terms of exercise, a number of things were in place when I was growing up that have fallen by the wayside. When the health committee looks at recommendations and talks about what strategies to employ, it may want to consider some of these.
The first one I want to talk about is one that the member opposite mentioned, namely Participaction. That was present in public schools when I went to school. All children were tested, then did various physical activities and were tested again to show their improvements in physical fitness. If we could return to mandatory programs in schools, some of the terrible scores the member referenced would be improved. Canada is scoring a D on active play and D+ on physical activity. We should have mandatory programs at more than just the public school level. When I was in school, physical education was mandatory up to and including high school. That was good for a number of reasons, not just for students to be physically fit but also for the fact that it introduced them to the joy of team sports. Although I was usually chosen last, I improved over time and went on to embrace physical fitness in my adult life.
Some of the things the Liberal government has done have discouraged fitness in children. Eliminating the child fitness tax credit was not a good thing. It had allowed families to get their children involved in sport and activity that was very beneficial to them. That should be revisited and brought back as part of the recommendations of the health committee.
The second part of this motion talks about the economic social, cultural, physical and mental health benefits associated with increased physical fitness.
Let us talk about the economic, social, cultural, physical and mental health benefits associated with increased fitness and physical activity among youth. As the Conservative Party's health critic and vice-chair of the Standing Committee on Health, I have heard countless constituents, stakeholders and Canadians from across the country express concerns about the future health of our youth.
Chronic illnesses and their consequences have an enormous impact on our society and our health care system as a whole. The most effective way to prevent chronic illnesses such as obesity, diabetes and heart disease in our society is by educating our youth.
Chronic illness prevention through education will help our youth become healthier adults and reduce the pressure on our health care system. Preventing chronic illness is always better than treating chronic illness, especially among youth.
For youth, physical activity is also primarily a social activity. Team sports in particular have a tremendous social, physical and mental effect on Canadians' health. Young people in particular can use physical activity and group sports as a way of socializing with their peers, reducing stress, and maintaining and improving their physical health. We should encourage our young people to participate in physical activity from a very early age.
Canada has the necessary infrastructure and programs, but our youth are relatively sedentary and often do not meet the daily targets for physical activity. Canadians in general are fairly sedentary, and that tendency is even more pronounced among our youth. Because of screen-based forms of entertainment like video games, cellphones and television, young Canadians are spending less and less time outside and less and less time engaged in physical activity.
We can see the need to consider all the effects physical activity can have on youth. With respect to its relation to anti-bullying, I asked a question about this and I am not surprised to find that there is a relationship. I was the victim of bullying when I was growing up. I describe it as being chosen last. I was both verbally and physically bullied when I was at school. However, as I grew up, I became very physically active. I began to do triathlons, participated in many sports and received my black belt in tae kwon do.
I encouraged my children to do the same, and I found that they did not suffer bullying at all when they were in school. In fact, the opposite would be true, and one of my daughters was expelled on several occasions. However, physical fitness makes people more resilient, as the member opposite mentioned in his speech.
I am incredibly glad to see this come forward. It is worthy. We in this House struggle to keep a balance and maintain our physical fitness at this advanced stage. It is really important to set that diligence and those patterns in our young people. I look forward to seeing this motion come to committee, participating in the study and coming with strong recommendations so we will have physically fit young people who are sound of mind and body.