Date: Friday, March 28, 1997
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: HHS Press Office (202)690-6343, John O'Leary (PCPFS)(202)272-3432

Shalala Urges Greater Sports Participation for Girls; Releases First Government Report Showing Physical, Mental and Social Benefits of Sports and Physical Activity for Girls

Cincinnati -- HHS Secretary Donna E. Shalala today joined with the nation's top female basketball players and coaches to encourage more young girls to participate in sports. With the NCAA Women's Final Four Championship as a backdrop, Secretary Shalala released a report which demonstrates that the benefits of physical activity and sports for girls extend beyond physical health to improved academic achievement, self-confidence, and better mental health.

Physical Activity and Sport in the Lives of Girls, a report of the President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports, examines the impact of sports on all aspects of a girl's health. It is the first government report taking an interdisciplinary approach to examine the impact of sports and physical activity on all aspects of a girl's life.

"Sports and physical activity participation can help girls avoid the dangerous minefields of adolescence and reach their full potential," said Secretary Shalala. "We've come a long way in breaking down barriers for girls, but now we need to work together to help get girls off the sidelines and onto the fields."

Today's event and report are part of the HHS "Girl Power!" initiative, a national public education campaign to help encourage and empower 9- to 14-year-old girls to make the most of their lives.

"Our 'Girl Power!' campaign is about helping young adolescent girls reach their full potential, and today's report makes an important contribution to that effort," Secretary Shalala said. "It shows that sports and physical activity can help a girl across the full spectrum of her life."

Specific conclusions of the President's Council report are:

• Girls' early involvement in physical activity and sport can reduce their likelihood of developing a number of chronic diseases and unhealthy conditions, such as coronary heart disease and high cholesterol.
  
  
• Regular physical activity can help girls build greater peak bone mass, thereby reducing adult risk of osteoporosis.
  
  
• Exercise and sport participation can enhance mental health by offering adolescent girls positive feelings about body image, improved self-esteem, tangible experiences of competency and success, and increased self-confidence. It can also help with academic achievement.
  
  
• Poverty substantially limits many girls' access to physical activity and sports, especially girls of color who are overrepresented in lower socioeconomic groups.

At today's Cincinnati event, Secretary Shalala noted that government alone cannot increase sports and physical activity opportunities for girls. She cited Nike, the YWCAs, and the Girl Scouts of the U.S.A. as recent examples of grassroots efforts to help girls become involved in sports

Last year Nike and the YWCA teamed up to start 25 new basketball programs for girls at Ys around the country. Based on the success of the program, they have expanded the program through a multi-year commitment.

Based on the success of a pilot program last year, the Girl Scouts will this fall begin a sports initiative for their 3.3 million members nationwide. The kick-off of the "Sports + Girls = A Winning Team" program will include more than 50 "Sports Fest" days at which more than 50,000 girls will get the chance to play a variety of sports and select the ones in which they will participate.

"We've come a long way from the days when females were relegated to 'lady-like' sports and girls stood on the sidelines as their brothers played," commented Sandra Perlmutter, executive director of the President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports. "But we must continue to bring more girls onto the courts and playing fields, so every girl has the opportunity to experience the many benefits -- and sheer pleasure -- of sports."

Today's report was made possible through the support of the Center for Mental Health Services part of HHS' Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, as part of the "Girl Power@ campaign, and the Center for Research on Girls and Women in Sports (CRGWS) at the University of Minnesota.

Launched in November, "Girl Power!" is a multi-phase, national public education campaign sponsored by the Department of Health and Human Services. Studies show that girls tend to lose self-confidence and self worth during this pivotal age, becoming less physically active, performing less well in school, and neglecting their own interests and aspirations. It's during these years that girls become more vulnerable to negative outside influences and to mixed messages about risky behaviors. "Girl Power!" is combining strong "no-use" messages about tobacco, alcohol and illicit drugs with an emphasis on providing opportunities for girls to build skills and self-confidence in academics, arts, sports and other endeavors.

Editors note: Copies of Physical Activity and Sport in the Lives of Girls (executive summary and full report) are available on the Internet at http://www.tuckercenter.org/and http://www.mentalhealth.org/

Note: HHS press releases are available on the World Wide Web at: http://www.hhs.gov.