HUNTINGTON -- A report gauging the effectiveness of a recent West Virginia law says the state schools should require recess more often and mandate the sale of healthy foods to improve their students' overall health.

A West Virginia University research team's evaluation of the Healthy Lifestyles Act, released Tuesday, found that 45 percent of state elementary schools require recess, and 21 percent of middle and high schools require healthy food sales at concession stands.

In 2005, West Virginia passed the Healthy Lifestyles Act to help address the epidemic of obesity in the state. The law was passed in recognition of the burden that obesity and weight-related health problems, such as type 2 diabetes and heart disease, placed on the state's health care infrastructure.

But more than 40 percent of schools lacked the resources to put all of the Healthy Lifestyles Act's requirements in place, researchers found. At the same time, principals overwhelmingly support the law, saying it has prompted school staffs to commit to more physical activity and promote healthier eating habits among students.

The study also notes a wide disparity between children's health and their parents' perceptions. For example, about 1 percent of parents believe their children are obese, but body mass index tests of second and fifth-graders indicated that 19 percent are obese.

Doctors Drew Bradlyn and Carole Harris - both professors of Behavioral Medicine & Psychiatry and directors of the Health Research Center at the WVU School of Medicine - presented their findings before an invited audience in the West Virginia House of Delegates chamber Tuesday.

"This has been such an important step forward for the state, and the fact that there is so much support for the act in the schools is really wonderful," Harris said. "Do we have some deficiencies? Yes. Do we have some areas for improvement? Yes. But it's a huge step forward."

Their surveys showed that some schools are already making headway in turning the school environment into a more healthful place. Thirty-eight percent of West Virginia counties have adopted policies prohibiting junk food at parties and in after-school programs, for instance. Only 19 percent of counties have set policies prohibiting the use of food as a reward, but new state guidelines in effect this school year will move that number to 100 percent in next year's evaluation.

Their findings also included the recommendation that the schools increase physical activity for students, conforming to the Institute of Medicine's guideline, which says students need 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity - half of that occurring during the school day.

"In West Virginia, we have many schools with limited facilities, including a few schools where physical education is delivered in hallways. They go outside when they can, but there are many days of inclement weather," Harris said.

"And the gymnasium is often the cafeteria in some schools," Bradlyn said. "So physical education classes can't be taught at lunchtime."