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The American Heart Association says fitness levels in children are lower today than 30 years ago. The researchers looked at information about 25 million children in 28 countries, from the past 46 years. They found that on average, boys and girls today run one kilometre a minute slower than their parents when they were kids. The distance a child can run is decreasing by around five per cent every decade. One of the biggest reasons for this slowdown in children's running ability is obesity. Kids are overweight because they eat too much and do not exercise enough.

The researchers are worried. Children are fatter and less fit, which means they will be unhealthier in the future. Researcher Dr Grant Tomkinson said, "they are more likely to develop conditions like heart disease later in life". He said people needed to get children to develop fitness habits that will keep them healthy now and in the future. They can try many different physical activities to see if they like them. He added: "They need to get moving. Young people can be fit in different ways. They can be strong like a weightlifter, or flexible like a gymnast, or skillful like a tennis player."