The Kidz Fit Club Challenge
This Program is designed to educate young children on Healthy living and eating habits. Build self-esteem and teach them good hygiene! We will customize a meal plan for your child. Our boot camp is fun and interactive! Your child will learn exercise techniques with a certified trainer and an ongoing workout program. We will also educate these kids on how to avoid obesity and what it takes to live a long healthy life!
About You
About You
First Name
Demeitrice
Last Name
Collins
Website
Organization
Country
About Your Organization
Organization Name
The Literacy for Youth Foundation
Organization Website
Organization Phone
404 454-3058
Organization Address
124 South Main Street Suite 1 M Jonesboro, Ga. 30236
Organization Country
United States, GA, Clayton County
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Your idea
Name Your Project
The Kidz Fit Club Challenge
Country your work focuses on
United States
Describe Your Idea
This Program is designed to educate young children on Healthy living and eating habits. Build self-esteem and teach them good hygiene! We will customize a meal plan for your child. Our boot camp is fun and interactive! Your child will learn exercise techniques with a certified trainer and an ongoing workout program. We will also educate these kids on how to avoid obesity and what it takes to live a long healthy life!
Website URL
Innovation
What makes your idea unique?
The Literacy for Youth Foundation is unique in its drive and passion to change the world one child at a time. The childhood obesity epidemic in America is a national health crisis. One in every three children (31.7%) ages 2-19 is overweight or obese. The life-threatening consequences of this epidemic create a compelling and critical call for action that cannot be ignored. Obesity is estimated to cause 112,000 deaths per year in the United States and one third of all children born in the year 2000 are expected to develop diabetes during their lifetime. The current generation may even be on track to have a shorter lifespan than their parents.
In total, this proposal presents a series of specific recommendations, many of which can be implemented right away. Summarizing them broadly, they include:
••Getting children a healthy start on life, adherence to limits on “screen time”; and quality child care settings with nutri¬tious food and ample opportunity for young children to be physically active.
••Empowering parents and caregivers with simpler, more actionable messages about nutri¬tional choices based on the latest Dietary Guidelines for Americans; improved labels on food and menus that provide clear information to help make healthy choices for children; reduced marketing of unhealthy products to children; and improved health care services, including BMI measurement for all children.
••Getting children more physically active, through quality physical education, recess, and other opportunities in and after school; addressing aspects of the “built environment” that make it difficult for children to walk or bike safely in their communities; and improving access to safe parks, playgrounds, and indoor and outdoor recreational facilities
Do you have a patent for this idea?
No
Impact
This Entry is about (Issues)
What impact have you had?
Over the last 2 years, we have taught hundreds of children in our community how to eat healthy and exercise. We have had a lot of community support and involvement.
Problem
Childhood obesity which lead to adult obesity! Obese adults have an increased risk for many diseases, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, some forms of arthritis, and several cancers. Overweight and obese children are more likely to become obese adults. Specifically, one study found that obese 6-8 year-olds were approximately ten times more likely to become obese adults than those with lower BMIs. The association may be stronger for obese adolescents than younger children. Obese children are also more likely to have increased risk of heart disease. One study found that approximately 70% of obese children had high levels (greater than 90th percentile) of at least one key risk factor for heart disease, and approximately 30% had high levels of at least two risk factors. There is evidence that heart disease develops in early childhood and is exacerbated by obesity, and people as young as 21 have been found to display early physical signs of heart disease due to obesity. Obese children are also more likely to develop asthma.
Obesity is the most significant risk factor for type 2 diabetes!
Actions
While additional studies to identify the precise causes of obesity will be useful, we do not need to wait to identify specific actions that we can take as a society to prevent obesity. No single action alone will reverse the childhood obesity epidemic; although there is no question that improving eating habits and increasing physical activity are two critical strategies.
As with tobacco prevention and control, comprehensive, multi-sectorial approaches are needed to address the many behavioral risk factors associated with obesity. These risk factors fall into three general categories:
(1) Material incentives, such as the cost of food or the desire to avoid poor health;
(2) Social norms, such as the nutritional and physical activity habits of friends and family, which influence us greatly;
(3) The broader environment, such as whether grocery stores and playgrounds are nearby or far away.
Changes in each of these risk factors are possible. For example, with sound information, parents and caregivers will be able to seek out the most nutritious foods to improve their children’s health.
Results
Our goal is to solve the problem of childhood obesity in a generation. Achieving that goal will mean returning to the expected levels in the population, before this epidemic began. That means returning to a childhood obesity rate of just 5% by 2030. Achieving this goal will require “bending the curve” fairly quickly, so that by 2015, there will be a 2.5% reduction in each of the current rates of overweight and obese children, and by 2020, a 5% reduction. Our progress can be charted through the CDC’s annual National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), which is aggregated every two years.
What will it take for your project to be successful over the next three years? Please address each year separately, if possible.
Year 1 we will focus on Physical Education and Healthy Eating.
Year two we will target on Educating parents and caregivers to assist in our cause
Year three we will assist parents and caregivers in establishing healthy eating habits for children, they should have greater access to the right tools and resources that increase nutritional knowledge and help them make healthier choices
Physical Activity
Young children need opportunities to be physically active through play and other activities. Physical activity assists children in obtaining and improving fine and gross motor skill development, coordina¬tion, balance and control, hand-eye coordination, strength, dexterity, and flexibility—all of which are necessary for children to reach developmental milestones.
Preschool years, in particular, are crucial for obesity prevention due to the timing of the development of fat tissue, which typically occurs from ages 3-7. During these preschool years, children’s BMI typically reaches its lowest point and then increases gradually through adolescence and most of adulthood. However, if this BMI increase begins before ages 4 to 6, research has suggested that children face a greater risk of obesity in adulthood.
Features of the child care center environment, including policies regarding activity and provider training, as well as the presence of portable and fixed play equipment, influence the amount of physical activity children engage in while at child care.
Healthy Eating
Eating well is equally important for the healthy development of young children, and research has shown that public programs can improve the nutritional quality of the food consumed in child care settings.
Empirically-based and practice-tested strate¬gies for improving these settings have been identified and provide a basis for the recommendations outlined in this proposal.
Parents are often unaware of quality elements when choosing child care and early education settings, including the importance of nutrition, physical activity, and screen time limits provided in these settings, and they can find it difficult to get this information.
Empowering Parents and Caregivers
Fundamentally, parents and caregivers are responsible for their children’s health and development.
What would prevent your project from being a success?
Having limited community support, few volunteers and being under funded all play a part in preventing our foundation from being as successful as we would like. However, by continuing to create partnerships with companies and gaining more community support through being increasingly involved in our community, we strive to make these programs a success in our community and surrounding areas. Fundraising in addition with funding from local businesses and state funding our organization does its very best to continue providing programs on a minimal budget.
How many people will your project serve annually?
101‐1000
What is the average monthly household income in your target community, in US Dollars?
$1000 - 4000
Does your project seek to have an impact on public policy?
No
Sustainability
What stage is your project in?
Operating for 1‐5 years
Is your organization a
Non‐profit/NGO/citizen sector organization
Is your initiative connected to an established organization?
No
If yes, provide organization name.
How long has this organization been operating?
1‐5 years
Does your organization have a Board of Directors or an Advisory Board?
Yes
Does your organization have a non-monetary partnerships with NGOs?
No
Does your organization have a non-monetary partnerships with businesses?
No
Does your organization have a non-monetary partnerships with government?
No
Please tell us more about how these partnerships are critical to the success of your innovation.
Approximately 150 words left (1200 characters).
What are the three most important actions needed to grow your initiative or organization?
Recruiting volunteers and Community involvement, marketing and getting the word out to the community and last but not least fundraising to grow the movement.
The Story
What was the defining moment that you led to this innovation?
So many children in our community are overweight. They sit around the house all day playing video games and eating unhealthy foods! It is time for them to get back into physical education. Our foundation decided to create a year round boot camp that will teach the children how to exercise and eat healthy.
Tell us about the social innovator behind this idea.
The innovator is our Executive Director, Demeitrice Collins. Mr. Collins wanted to make a difference in the community and show children another side of life. The healthy side! At no cost to the community, he decided to unite other non-profits, nursing organizations, medical facilities, and sororities/fraternities to join together in this cause to help promote healthy eating and exercise.
How did you first hear about Changemakers?
Newsletter from Changemakers
If through another, please provide the name of the organization or company
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