Fit Not Fat
Helping Arkansas Children Eat Healthy and Move More
Nearly 40% of Arkansas children ages 2-19 are overweight or at risk of becoming overweight. As a state and a nation, we face a growing epidemic of childhood obesity with serious implications for the future.
Preventing child obesity requires focus on overall health and fitness. Schools and communities need to move beyond BMI and vending machines to promote healthy habits.
Every Arkansan Needed! Turning around the rising tide of child obesity calls every Arkansan to promote healthy eating and increased physical activity.
ChangingChildObesity.org provides examples of what Arkansans are doing to help children get and stay fit across the state. We hope these examples will motivate you to join with your schools and community to do you can with what you have where you are.
What Works in one community will need to be adapted to work in another community. Every community is unique. The communities most likely to produce healthy and fit young people are those that build on what already exists using resources at hand. Share your experiences and success stories here.
The consequences of inaction are unacceptable. Seventy percent of overweight teens become overweight adults. Chldren need to learn healthy habits for eating and physical activity from a very young age so that they enter their critical teen years healthy and fit. Anyone who has struggled with weight as an adult knows the prospects of losing and keeping substantial weight off as an adult are dismal.
The growing numbers of overweight children and adults not only affect the long-term health of individuals but also destroy the financial security of families. As the numbers increase, the health consequences of excess weight decrease worker productivity and increase health costs for everyone.
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Fit Not Fat: Helping Arkansas Children Eat Healthy & Move More
Report (pdf)
PowerPoint Summary (pdf)
"Children have never been very good at listening to their elders, but they have never failed to imitate them,"
--James Baldwin
What are your schools and community doing to set a good example?
What are you doing to support your schools and community?
An Advisory Committee provided direction to the project.
This project was partially funded by
Blue & You Foundation For A Healthier Arkansas
Arkansas Children's Hospital