A graduate student has been awarded nearly $5,000 to study how participation in youth sports affects children’s weight.

Eric Wickel, graduate student in health and human performance, was awarded the National Football League Charities Pediatric Research Award from the American College of Sports Medicine Foundation.

“This grant will provide evidence that youth and adolescent sports provide a major outlet for energy expenditure,” Wickel said.

Wickel said the NFL created interest in the study of youth obesity and that support led to the grant being possible. The NFL Charities provides $10,000 each year through the foundation for the initiative to support applied research in exercise science that focuses on human performance and injury prevention in youth.

Wickel hopes his award will enable him to determine how to approach and answer questions about childhood obesity.

Wickel, who has participated in football, wrestling and track, said childhood obesity is a worldwide problem, and he hopes that his research will help find remedies for it.

“Based on data from national health surveys, approximately one-third of kids from the ages of 2 to 18 are classified overweight or obese,” said Joe Eisenmann, assistant professor of health and human performance.

According to the American Obesity Association, some of the causes of childhood obesity are a lack of regular exercise, childhood eating habits, sedentary behavior as children watch more television and spend more time at the computer, low socioeconomic status and environment. Genetics can also play a role.

Gregory Welk, assistant professor of health and human performance, said because of the nature of society and the easy access to food, it is harder for children to maintain healthy weight levels.

Welk notes much of the time, children are not at fault.

“Parents have to work harder,” Welk said.

Wickel’s research will look at the physical activity patterns of youth and how sports contribute to their total daily activity. He hopes the grant will help to quantify what that contribution is.

Wickel hopes to continue to do research in the field of obesity. He hopes to complete his research in the next two to three years.