Childhood Obesity Prevention

Sponsor Organization: U.S. Department of Health & Human Services
Campaign Website: www.LetsMove.gov and www.smallstep.gov
Volunteer Agency: Grapevine Productions, Casanova Pendrill, McCann Erickson, New York 
Campaign Partners: Warner Bros., Scholastic Media, National Football League (NFL), National Basketball Association (NBA), qubo

About 9 million children over the age of 6 are considered overweight in this country. The American obesity epidemic has been passed to our youngest generation. Overweight children are at far greater risk of developing some chronic diseases, and in addition to putting their health at risk, overweight children are often subjected to exclusion by their peers, which can affect their emotional well-being.

As part of First Lady Michelle Obama’s LetsMove initiative, a couple of complimentary advertising efforts demonstrate the importance of eating healthy and being physically active, crucial elements to reversing the trend of childhood obesity.

• PSAs feature well-known Looney Tunes’ characters, along with professional athletes Drew Brees (New Orleans Saints Quarterback & Super Bowl MVP), Kevin Durant (Oklahoma City Thunder Forward), Tony Hawk (Pro Skateboarder), and Misty May Treanor (2-Time Olympic Gold Medalist) showing kids that you don’t have to be a pro to “be a player.”
• Another series of PSAs features the popular Scholastic characters Maya & Miguel and encourages children to the “Take the Maya & Miguel Challenge” as a way to get more physically active and eat healthy.

All ads direct kids and their families to visit www.LetsMove.gov to discover fun new play ideas and get more information. From there, they can also access SmallStep.gov which features both Looney Tunes and Maya & Miguel characters, along with more activities, games, PSA’s, wallpapers and healthy recipe ideas for kids.

This is a companion campaign to the adult-targeted Obesity Prevention campaign known as Small Steps. The campaign began in November 2005.

Learn about a related Ad Council initiative, The Coalition for Healthy Children.