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Home > Policy > White Paper, Notice, Announcement > White Paper > JAPANESE GOVERNMENT POLICIES IN EDUCATION,SCIENCE AND CULTURE1991 > PART1 PART1B Chapter1 �2

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PART 1 SPORTS AND HEALTH
PART 1 B ENRICHMENT OF HEALTH EDUCATION
Chapter 1 Enrichment of Health Education
�2 Recent Social Changes and the Need for Health Education



1 Influence of Social Changes on School Children's Health and Body Dimensions

The high-paced economic development in post-war Japan brought a rise in the public's income and raised the overall standard of living. Through improvements in dietary habits, school children's physical characteristics such as height and weight increased markedly. Furthermore, the progress in medical technology and improvements in public hygiene, coupled with improved dietary habits brought about a drastic reduction in infectious diseases such as tuberculosis and trachoma, both of which had caused high rates of illness in the pre-war period.

During this time there were considerable transformations in the lifestyle and living environment surrounding school children such as urbanization, development of an information oriented society, the trend towards nuclear families and fewer children, etc. Urbanization and the trend towards an information oriented society brought about a reduction in playground space and fewer opportunities to get out into nature. This in turn resulted in a severe impact on school children's physical and mental development, i.e., a reduction in physical activity, increases in psychological stress, etc.

Moreover, changes in the family structure such as the trend towards the nuclear family and fewer children per family have decreased the opportunities for inter-generational contact and for working together with family members of differing ages seriously influencing the formation of basic, healthy living habits.

2 Situation of School Children's Health
(1) Changes in physical strength and body dimensions

The influences from changes in lifestyle and the living environment on school children's physiques are distinctly evident from data in the "School Health Survey." This continuing survey of the physical characteristics of school children has been carried out since 1900 when it was begun under the "Regulations on Physical Examination Measurements of Pupils and Students." In fact, ninety-one years have elapsed since the first survey and now this survey is required by law and is known as "Designated Survey Number 15." It is one of the longest running, valuable and rare data sets of its kind anywhere in the world.

According to the survey, the height, weight, chests and seating height of both boys and girls have all steadily increased and for the school years represented they are now the highest ever recorded (see Table 4). Comparing the present school children's data with those of their parents' generation 30 years ago (1961), shows that especially for lower secondary school boys there has been a dramatic increase in height (9.3cm) and weight (9.1kg.)

(See Chart 10-1

,

10-2)

. In the case of height, since seating height has not significantly changed, the increase can be attributed to a change in leg length. Moreover, examining data from the National Nutrition Survey (conducted by the Ministry of Health and Welfare) regarding changes in patterns of nutritional intake for energy and protein food groups reveals a marked increase in animal products. Increases in school children's weight and height can be explained in terms of these underlying changes in dietary and living habits.

Table 4 National Averages in Height, Weight, Chest Circumference and Seating Height According to Age

As for physical strength of school children, the results of a physical strength diagnostic test (sum of scores for 5 indicators of strength including agility, speed, muscle strength, endurance and flexibility) showed, with some exceptions, a trend toward a slackening of physical strength. Among the probable underlying factors for this decrease are changes in the lifestyle and living environment caused by urbanization, the trend towards an information oriented society, etc.; and more concretely, a lack of exercise. As a means towards coping with these problems, the Ministry is endeavoring to improve sports promotion policy for children and youth as described in Part 1A, Chapter 2, Section 5.

(2) Changes in the pattern of illnesses

It has been pointed out that eating habits and transformations in the everyday behavior of the Japanese have brought about changes in the pattern of illness. Especially in consideration of the high pre-war infection rates of tuberculosis and trachoma and other infectious diseases, the drop in those rates is remarkable. Compared with earlier periods, the rate of tuberculosis has dropped dramatically; and in the case of trachoma the rate is virtually zero nowadays.

These past infectious diseases, however, have been replaced by disorders such as tooth decay, near-sightedness, nasitis and pharyngitis and obesity, all of which have become serious problems among school children and others. The rate of tooth decay just after the war (1951) was between 40 and 50%. Thirty years ago in 1961, due to changes in dietary habits, the rate of tooth decay rose to 80% and only 10 years ago in 1981 the rate had risen to around 95%. In the past few years however, the rate of tooth decay has slightly receded.

For vision, there is a marked trend towards poorer vision as witnessed by the dramatic increase in lower than normal vision among elementary, lower secondary and upper secondary school students.

For nasitis and pharyngitis there is a general increasing trend as there is for obesity (persons diagnosed as being obese by school physicians). Notably at the elementary school level, the percentage for obesity has doubled over the past 10 years.

Chart 10-1 Changes in Height for Girls and Boys

Chart 10-2 Changes in Weight for Girls and Boys


3 Changes in Health Conditions and Health Education

With these changes in the health condition of school children, the policy of health education against infectious diseases has become insufficient. What is necessary today is a health education that promotes both the physical and mental well being of school children; an education that naturally includes early detection of illness and abnormalities and one that deals more actively with a wide range of complex and diverse problems.

Especially in recent years, positive measures are needed for actively coping with serious problems such as alcohol abuse, smoking, drug use and sexually related problems such as AIDS and abortion. In order to further promote physical and mental health it is essential from an early age to improve and maintain a lifestyle and eating habits that are conducive to health. It is thus important to impart practical education and guidance directly linked to real life experiences which will provide children with scientific knowledge regarding the mind and body and further their understanding of the fact that good health is basic to living. In these days as the nation progresses towards a long-life society, it becomes all the more important to ensure the health of the public throughout the various life stages. Along with cultivating the ability for school children of all ages to take care of and improve their own health, it is essential to promote the kind of health education that can meet the demands of the "era of the octogenarian" and help bring to flower a safe, happy and healthy existence for people throughout their lives.


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