Tweens and teens may seem to be constantly on the go. But while they're go, go, going ... are they really being physically active? Encourage them to be more active this holiday season with gifts that either inspire physical activity or generate it.

When choosing active gifts for the younger set, keep fun in mind. While a pedometer might be a great tool for kids of any age, it's not exactly thrilling for a teenager to open a handsomely wrapped gift and find a pedometer inside. So look for items that not only promote physical fitness, but also generate some excitement. Check out the gallery for some activity-inspiring gifts for the tweens and teens in your life.

Quick -- What vegetable is pictured here?

If you answered celery, you're right. Too easy? You might think so, but according to studies out of the UK, a third (33%) of adolescents (11 to 13-year-olds) can't identify celery. Think that's frightening? Here are some other stats from Diet Blog:

• Over 20% of tweens didn't know what a potato looks like
• 5.5% can't identify a carrot
• 33% of boys couldn't name a cucumber but 90% of girls could

This might not seem like a big deal, but I'm guessing that nearly all of them can identify a French fry or a bag of chips.

What do you think? Does your tween know his or her fruits and veggies?

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I hesitate to post a story like this, as, with a growing daughter of my own, I'm hyper-aware of the pressure put on girls and young women to meet unrealistic standards of beauty. However, a recent study suggests that tweens are more prone to weight gain than teenagers, and that obesity in early adolesce can be a serious health concern.

While the study didn't offer an answer as to why younger girls were more at risk, it did note that overweight pre-teens were seeing an increase in blood pressure and cholesterol levels. More alarmingly, these chubby tweens are ten times more likely to grow into fat adults.

Other studies have shown that these early adolescent years are when kids stop listening to their parents, and start eating what they want. This, coupled with a reduction in physical activity, may be a cause of the problem.

But the question is, how do we address pre-teen health and fitness without making it more difficult to navigate the tumultuous tween years?

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