Health Initiative Is Called “What Moves U”

To combat the growing trend of inactive and overweight children in our community, Wolfson Children’s Hospital has joined with the Jacksonville Jaguars Foundation for the local implementation of a national community health initiative of the National Football League (NFL) and the American Heart Association (AHA) called “What Moves U.” The program encourages physical activity to address and prevent the problem of childhood obesity. The AHA’s Greater Southeast Affiliate and the Duval County Public Schools are also collaborating in the local implementation.

“What Moves U” hopes to motivate and inspire kids to become more physically active and develop healthy eating habits. Research shows that the benefits of physical activity and good nutrition include:

• Improved performance in school
• Higher self-esteem
• Lower levels of anxiety, stress and depression
• Reduced risk of heart disease, high blood pressure, stroke, type 2 diabetes, gallstones and arthritis
• Maintenance of a healthy weight
• Increased life expectancy

The “What Moves U” program in Northeast Florida includes an 2007-08 pilot with in-school curriculum for sixth-grade students in six middle schools and youth obesity prevention and reduction grants of up to $500,000 over the next three years to local non-profit agencies. Future plans also include a full roll-out of the program to sixth-grade students across Northeast Florida.

In partnership with the Duval County Public Schools, the program is targeted to sixth graders because they are at a critical age to make good choices about exercise and food. Five middle schools in Duval County and one middle school from Nassau County are participating. They include:

• Mayport Middle School
• Ribault Middle School
• Callahan Middle School
• Kirby Smith Middle School
• Jeff Davis Middle School
• Baldwin Middle/Senior High School

The “What Moves U” curriculum was developed by the NFL and the American Heart Association, in collaboration with teachers and professionals around the nation, to provide education and hands-on activities to middle school youth on the importance of healthy physical activity and good nutrition. The comprehensive approach includes activities and projects in various courses, including Language Arts, Mathematics, Physical Education, Science and Social Studies. This provides students with fun ways to learn through the perspective of, and with the support of, all of their teachers.

“What Moves U” will not only reach approximately 3,000 kids in First Coast schools, but also children attending after-school programs at a number of non-profit qualifying agencies which are receiving program implementation grants, including:

• Community Connections at the A. L. Lewis Center
• Gateway Community Services at The Players Championship (TPC) Village and Impact House
• Girls on the Run (five sites)
• Metro Kids Konnection at Cleveland Arms Apartments
• PACE Center for Girls

Jacksonville Jaguars Receiver Ernest Wilford is the local player spokesperson for “What Moves U” and has already made school appearances to kick off the program. Every participating student receives a “What Moves U Playbook,” designed by The Dalton Agency with the help of Wolfson Children’s Hospital pediatric dietitians and health educators, combining “Wolfson Fit Facts” and Jaguars-inspired physical activities.

The national web site, www.WHATMOVESU.com, is available to anyone and engages kids and keeps them coming back for the latest activities. The site offers award points that teachers give to students who complete assigned physical activities; the points are used for prizes through the web site. Teachers can get information on how to incorporate physical activity into daily lesson plans. School-wide events such as creating a school walking club are also encouraged.

Baptist Health is a faith-based, mission-driven system comprised of Baptist Medical Center Downtown and Baptist Heart Hospital; Baptist Medical Center Beaches; Baptist Medical Center Nassau; Baptist Medical Center South; and Wolfson Children’s Hospital – Jacksonville’s only children’s hospital. Baptist Health also includes cardiology and cardiovascular surgery services, a comprehensive cancer center, orthopaedic institute, women’s resource center, a full range of psychology and psychiatry services, outpatient facilities, urgent care services and a network of primary care physicians’ offices throughout Northeast Florida. Baptist Health is the official healthcare provider for the Jacksonville Jaguars.

For more information, visit www.e-baptisthealth.com

The Jaguars Foundation focuses on strategic grant making, networking and volunteer support to serve economically and socially disadvantaged youth and families of Jacksonville. Other Foundation programs include Honor Rows_® which uses seats at Jaguars home games to reward economically and socially disadvantaged youth for reaching pre-determined academic, behavioral, and public service goals; The Official PLAYBOOKS_®, an initiative to encourage reading and use of local public libraries; Straight Talk™, focused on reducing teen pregnancy and AIDS, and the Jaguars Don’t Smoke campaign to reduce tobacco use among youth.

For more information, visit the Foundation’s pages at www.Jaguars.com

National Facts

During the last 25 years, many of our children have exchanged physical outdoor play for sedentary activities such as computer time and video games. Sixty percent of our nine- to 13-year-olds don’t participate in organized sports or physical activity outside of school; 25 percent only get 30 minutes of daily physical activity; and just eight percent of elementary schools, 6.4 percent of middle schools, and 5.8 percent of high schools provide daily physical education.

As a result, twice as many children and almost three times as many teens are overweight today as compared to 1980. Along with weight increase have come high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes and high blood cholesterol levels, all conditions that used to be only associated with adulthood.
(Source: The Problem of Overweight Children and Adolescents. Department of Health and Human Services Fact Sheet)

CONTACT: Peter Racine, Executive Director
(904) 633-6599