Mexico installs ‘ergometric desks’ in schools to fight childhood obesity

Mexico has adopted an unusual strategy in its battle against childhood obesity, a condition that affects nearly a fifth of school-age children in the country, according to 2021 data.

Some schools have begun to install desks equipped with pedals, like a variation on an exercise bike, allowing students to work out and burn calories while in class — something like studying math while doing physical education.

Students from a secondary school around the city of Monterrey, in northern Mexico, approved the new tables.

Reimy Rodriguez, who attends the first year of public school 24 Guillermo Prieto, told the Reuters news agency that the exercise has the added advantage of making classmates more focused. “It’s amazing actually.”

One third of the Mexican population is obese and, by all indications, the problem starts in childhood. More recent research by the Ministry of Health in the country showed that almost 8% of children under five years old in the country are overweight or obese, a percentage that rises to 37% when the range is from 5 to 11 years old.

Rodriguez’s school today has 2 of its 21 classrooms fully equipped with the special desks — the plan is that in the future they will completely replace the current facilities. Miguel Ortiz, founder of the company that built the furniture, named “bibanco”, claimed to have inspired his creations in a model seen in a Canadian school.

“We decided to develop a prototype at a cost that would make it feasible to implement it here,” explained the businessman, adding that each wallet costs around 2,700 Mexican pesos (around R$730), five times less than the original Canadian wallet. .

School director Sanjuanita Garcia said the news was especially welcome after the pandemic. “After we resumed face-to-face classes, we started to see a lot of anxiety among our boys and an increase in obesity. With this project, we are trying to solve the problem.”