America has a serious childhood obesity problem. Look around any schoolyard and you will see the evidence. And the statistics are frightening, indeed. According to a recent article1 in the New England Journal of Medicine:
• Approximately 1 in 3 children and adolescents is now overweight or obese.
• More and more children are suffering from obesity-related complications, both physical and psychological.
• By mid-century, pediatric obesity may shorten U.S. life expectancy by 2 to 5 years.
Because obese children usually grow up to be obese adults, they will eventually suffer from a range of health problems including hypertension, heart disease, sleep apnea, diabetes, eating disorders, depression, and anxiety. The cost to employers, taxpayers, and society in general will be staggering.
“Studies show that in a few years nearly half of the children in America will be overweight or obese,” says Thomas B. Gilliam, Ph.D., creator of the Move It. Lose It. Live Healthy. (MILILH)body weight management program. “Now is the time for society to turn this epidemic around, before it’s too late.”
Dr. Gilliam’s integrated program—which sends a consistent message via the schools, the workplace, and the community—teaches people of all ages how to safely lose weight and keep it off. Its “schools” component has everything teachers need to make it successful and simple.
The Ingredients:
Healthy Lifestyle Curricula. Consisting of separate kits for different age groups, these lessons center on colorful characters with lots of kid appeal. Protagonist Heart
“E” Heart leads the charge, with the rest of the cast (Lazy Heart, Smoker Heart, Fit Fat Cell, Bulgy Fat Cell, and more) illustrating the dos and don’ts of nutrition and exercise. Lessons consist of stories, activities, key points of discussion, songs, and more.
Children’s Books. Heart “E” Heart and his friends show up again in this series of fun books for the home or classroom. The brightly illustrated, easy-to-follow stories are written for kids of various ages. Teachers can read the books in classrooms or give them out as prizes.
Posters. A series of eye-catching posters, designed for display in classrooms, remind children of the basics of good health.
Weekly Challenges. These “assignments” (like learning to make orange juice ice pops)—help kids see that practicing good health habits can be fun.
Extra Surprises. These premiums—T-shirts, jump ropes, caps, water bottles, and wristbands—help reinforce the healthy lifestyle lessons.
Move It. Lose It. Live Healthy. really works.
Here’s why:
Dr. Gilliam’s Move It. Lose It. Live Healthy.program is a holistic and proactive way for schools and parents to join forces to battle childhood obesity. It’s based on the premise that people cannot change their established lifestyle habits unless what’s driving that change is reinforced in every area of their lives. Therefore…
• There’s a strong “home” component. Letters to parents, to be sent home in conjunction with the lessons, take the healthy body weight message to the whole family. The storybooks make for captivating bedtime reading.
• Good health lessons reinforce other core skills. While learning how to make smart food and activity decisions, the children get to practice their math and science skills by counting and calculating their heart rates. They also improve their vocabulary and critical thinking skills while exploring how the body converts food into energy.
• It’s fun! Kids will get to know a whole gang of colorful cartoon mascots through both the curricula and the age-appropriate storybooks. Heart “E” Heart and pals make reaching and maintaining a healthy body weight an exciting and entertaining goal.
• The message continues all year long. Unlike many short-lived six-week programs, MILILH utilizes the school year template to its advantage. This constant information flow guarantees that children will not only understand what they learn, but that this knowledge will sink in and stick with them for years to come.
By teaching young children about fitness and healthy eating, we can give future generations the tools they need to escape obesity and enjoy a higher quality of life. Move It. Lose It. Live Healthy.can help our nation finally tip the scales in the other direction.
1. Ludwig, David S., “Childhood Obesity—The Shape of Things to Come.” The New England Journal of Medicine, December 6, 2007. |
