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The SOSMentor’s ShapeUp Program Thinks So… With Teen Role Models At School Teaching Younger Children, Learning How To Combat Childhood Obesity Can Be Pretty Cool!
As cited in the Teens As Teachers Cooperative Fact Sheet, University of Rhode Island, younger children respond better to teen modeling than adults. With less of an age difference, a quicker rapport/relationship is established among the teen and youth. Teens can serve as mentors to the younger members. This reinforces learning in the teens, helps them learn the developmental stages, become organize, and become actively involved in helping their community. Obesity and malnutrition in childhood create strong potential health risk factors for childhood and adult degenerative diseases. There has become an epidemic of unfit and overweight children and families in this country (see statistics below), and through the ShapeUp program, SOSMentor hopes to not only reduce the rate of childhood obesity and related illnesses, but to increase youth participation in regular physical activity and improve students’ fitness levels, create student advocates for healthy eating and increased activity, and teach high school students responsibility, with healthy food choices, exercising regularly and recording their activities in journals. In four short years, the ShapeUp program is in progress in over 14 schools in the Los Angeles Unified School System, and hopes to bring this unique program to school systems across the country. They believe that the school is the central force in a majority of children’s lives and by creating an environment of health and well being, it will assist children in all aspects of their lives now and in the future. Statistics: In the United States, the prevalence of overweight and obesity has increased dramatically in both adults and children in the past three decades. In 1970, about 15% of adults were obese and by 2004, the rate had climbed to 32%. The prevalence of overweight and obesity among nearly tripled among 12-19 year olds and more than quadrupled among 6-11 year olds in the last three decades. In California, among adolescents, 14% are obese and another 16% are overweight. (2005 California Health Interview Survey) One in three children are overweight or obese and pediatricians are seeing more cases of high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and Type 2 diabetes. Americans spend 150 billion a year to treat obesity related conditions. Each year in California, overweight and obesity costs families, employees, the health care industry and the government 21 billion, more than any other state. (Finkelstein EA, Fiebelkorn IC, Wang G. State-level estimates of annual medical expenditures attributed to obesity. (Obesity Research. Jan 2004; 12(1):18-24) About SOSMentor Organization and ShapeUp Program SOSMentor is a non-profit, 501(c) 3 organization formed in 2000 to provide academic mentoring, resources, and educational support to underserved students and their families. Through its ShapeUp Program, mentoring is used to empower high school students to become role models and advocates for healthy eating and increased physical activity for younger students and families. The mission of SOSMentor is to educate and motivate underserved youth in greater Los Angeles in healthy eating, fitness, and college and career planning through after school mentoring programs. Founded by educators who have a combined 70 years of experience, Dr. Robert Donahue, SOS Mentor’s Executive Director, has served as Principal at the elementary, middle and high school levels and Carole Donahue, is the Coordinator of family literacy programs for LAUSD and the developer of workshops on nutrition literacy for 100 schools. Please visit www.sosmentor.org for more information. Subscribe to our FREE Ezine and be eligible for Health News, discounted products/services and coupons related to your Health. We publish 24/7. HealthNewsDigest.com We videotape Press Conferences, produce Satellite MediaTour's, B-rolls, PSA's, - all with distribution: HealthyTelevisionProductionstvmike13@healthnewsdigest.com Top of Page 
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