Tune in for this important event on Give The World Your Heart TV in cooperation with the National League of Cities TV and the American Heart Association. This is the second in a series of GTWYH.TV webcasts on solving the problem of childhood obesity.
(Click here for first in the series of webcasts "Solving the Problem of Childhood Obesity", February 24, 2010.)
Today, about one of three American kids and teens are overweight or obese, nearly triple the rate in 1963. Among children today, obesity is causing a broad range of health problems that previously weren't seen until adulthood. These include high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes and elevated blood cholesterol levels. There are also psychological effects. Obese children are more prone to low self-esteem, negative body image and depression.
However, there's good news: Obesity can be stopped. And it doesn't take high-tech treatments or cutting-edge medications. The solution begins and ends with the daily decisions we make. The American Heart Association is working to help kids and families live heart-healthy lives. Use the resources below to help your family live longer, healthier lives.
This Give The World Your Heart webcast (final speakers TBA shortly) will focus on positive programs for kids including wellness and lowering obesity.
Dr. Stephen R. Daniels, MD, PhD, Featured Expert for This Webcast
Dr. Stephen R. Daniels, MD, PhD, earned his medical degree from the University of Chicago in 1977 and his Masters in Public Health from Harvard University in 1979. He completed his residency in Pediatrics and his fellowship in Pediatric Cardiology at the Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, in 1981 and 1984, respectively. In 1989 he received his doctorate in Epidemiology from the University of North Carolina. Dr. Daniels held numerous academic and clinical appointments at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine and the Cincinnati Children's Hospital before joining the University of Colorado School of Medicine in 2006 as Chairman of the Department of Pediatrics and Pediatrician-in-Chief and L. Joseph Butterfield Chair in Pediatrics at The Children's Hospital.
Dr. Daniels' area of expertise is in preventive cardiology, with a longtime interest in the application of sophisticated epidemiologic and biostatistical methods to pediatric clinical research problems. He is interested in the causes of blood pressure elevation and cholesterol abnormalities in children and adolescents, particularly the role that obesity may play in these health issues; development of structural and functional abnormalities in the heart and vascular system, including cardiovascular abnormalities occurring in pediatric patients with diabetes mellitus; as well as the relationship of left ventricular hypertrophy to obesity and hypertension. The role of lifestyle factors, such as diet and physical activity, is central to many of Dr. Daniel's studies.
Dr. Daniels has served as Associate Editor for the Journal of Pediatrics since 1995. He is a peer reviewer for many other journals and is widely published in the medical literature. He is co-author of Medical Epidemiology, an introductory textbook for medical students, and co-author and editor of the book Pediatric Prevention of Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease, published in 2006. Dr. Daniels is a highly sought-after speaker nationwide.
Dr. Daniels has received numerous awards and honors throughout his career. He has been an active participant and leader in many national investigative committees and study sections, including the American Academy of Pediatrics' Committee on Nutrition, the American Heart Association's Council for Cardiovascular Disease in the Young, and the International Pediatric Hypertension Association's Executive Board, which he recently chaired. He has also served as a frequent participant in grant review study sections and science panels of the National Institutes of Health.
Dr. Daniels is board certified in Pediatrics and certified by the American Society of Hypertension as a Specialist in Clinical Hypertension.
Lisa L. Sharma, Senior Associate at the National League of Cities Institute for Youth, Education and Families
Lisa Sharma is a Senior Associate at the National League of Cities Institute for Youth, Education and Families in Washington, DC where she manages the Institute's childhood obesity prevention program. The goal of the YEF Institute's childhood obesity program is to stimulate and support the development of models for city-level policy change and successful collaboration between city, school and community leaders; to build a vibrant network of city officials committed to reducing childhood obesity; and to raise awareness among municipal leaders about the childhood obesity epidemic and potential city-level responses. Current projects include a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation-funded initiative focused on the engagement of local elected officials in Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi to advance policies that promote healthy eating and active living.
Lisa is committed to the advancement of health and wellness and has a personal passion for healthy eating and active living. She recently authored an article appearing in the American Journal of Public Health entitled The Food Industry and Self-Regulation: Standards to Promote Success and to Avoid Public Health Failures. She also serves as a member of various health-focused committees including, YMCA Healthy Communities Roundtable, YMCA Urban Task Force, National Plan for Physical Activity Parks, Recreation and Fitness Working Group, National Center for Safe Routes to School National Review Group and the National Trust for Historic Preservation "Helping Johnny Walk to School: Sustaining Communities through Smart Policy" Advisory Committee.
Prior to entering the field of public health, Lisa had a successful career in investment banking within the global life science and healthcare sector. Lisa holds a Master of Public Health (MPH) and Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Health Policy and Management from Johns Hopkins University and Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from New York University.
Amy Garcia, RN, MSN, NASN Executive Director National Association of School Nurses
Amy Garcia, RN, MSN, is the executive director of the National Association of School Nurses (NASN), an organization that supports the health and educational success of children throughout the United States by providing leadership to advance the school nursing practice. The organization itself consists of over 14,000 nurses and reaches an estimated 16 million students each year.
Amy comes to the position from USD #259 - Wichita Public Schools, where she served as the Risk Manager and Employee Benefits supervisor, along with being the president of Self Insured Health and Disabilities Plans. While there, she successfully supervised the Employee Benefits and Risk Management staff, programs and budgets and managed self-funded programs and budgets of the benefits programs. In the past, Amy has owned her own business, Performance Assessment Center; worked as a senior loss control specialist for Lockton Companies; a safety officer/director for Via Christi Regional Medical Center; and an education coordinator for the Wichita Dialysis Center. A Kansas native, Garcia earned her undergraduate degree in nursing/adult education and a Master of Science from Wichita State University.
Amy started her career in nursing with an emphasis on diabetes. For over 15 years, she was an active member of the American Diabetes Association, where in 1988 she was awarded the ADA-KS Outstanding Service to Youth and in 1995, the ADA-KS Patient Educator of the Year She was also the program chair of the local chapter of the American Association of Diabetes Educators. Ms. Garcia came to NASN with the desire to improve the health and educational success of children and youth. She has been supportive of the development, growth, dissemination and advancement of the School Nurse Childhood Obesity Prevention Education Program (S.C.O.P.E.), developed at NASN to provide strategies for school nurses to assist students, families and the school community to address the challenges of obesity and overweight. Additionally, Ms. Garcia has served as the project director of a five-year funded cooperative agreement with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Division of Diabetes Translation awarded to NASN. Her leadership has provided direction and oversight for the obesity prevention and diabetes risk reduction programming arm of this project. Ms. Garcia has extensive experience and involvement in advocacy and policies related to children's health, childhood obesity, diabetes in children, and environmental changes in schools to the benefit of all children. She has been a vocal advocate and supporter of health care for all children and has served on many boards and committees related to children's health. Currently, she is a board member for the National Education Association's Health Information Network and on the advisory board for the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease.
Amy has put her knowledge to use by becoming a nationally known speaker on health care issues, including recent media outreach on H1N1 influenza, prescription drug abuse and immunizations. In addition, she has appeared on a variety of national and regional television news programs and morning shows and has been interviewed by many radio stations and newspapers, including The Washington Post and the Wall Street Journal.
Ginny Ehrlich
Executive DirectorAlliance for a Healthier Generation Founded by the American Heart Association and the William J. Clinton Foundation
Ginny Ehrlich is the executive director of the Alliance for a Healthier Generation, founded by the American Heart Association and the William J. Clinton Foundation in May of 2005. The goal of the Alliance is to reduce the nationwide prevalence of childhood obesity by 2015, and to empower kids nationwide to make healthy lifestyle choices.
The Alliance for a Healthier Generation is also one of six founding members of the Partnership for a Healthier America, the nonpartisan, non-profit organization formed to complement First Lady Michelle Obama's Let's Move initiative. As a founding member, the Alliance provides strategic counsel and expertise to help scale, launch and sustain the First Lady's work in combating childhood obesity.
The Alliance for a Healthier Generation has made tremendous strides in making physical activity and healthy eating easy for kids and families to access. Because there is no single cause and no single solution to the childhood obesity epidemic, the Alliance confronts the issue from multiple directions, including programs in America's schools, direct engagement with industry, and outreach to kids and teens themselves.
The Alliance's Healthy Schools Program supports more than 9,000 schools in all 50 states helping to transform their environments into places where physical activity and healthier foods are more available to more than five million students before, during and after school.
The empowerME Movement, the Alliance's by kids for kids initiative, inspires all kids to make healthy behavior changes and to become advocates in their communities for healthy eating and physical activity. EmpowerME has activated more than 2.2 million teens and tweens to commit to eat better, move more and serve as leaders among their peers.
The Alliance also engages with companies from diverse industries that have the ability to improve the access kids and families have to healthcare benefits and healthier foods and beverages. The Alliance School Beverages and Competitive Foods Guidelines, voluntary agreements with the food and beverage industries, have resulted in healthier choices available to students in schools across the country, including a landmark agreement with the carbonated beverage industry that resulted in an 88 percent reduction in beverage calories shipped to America's schools between 2004 and 2009.
Prior to taking on the role of Executive Director, Ginny served as the National Schools Director of the Alliance from its inception in 2005 through 2008. The Healthy Schools Program now helps more than 9,000 schools in all 50 states develop healthier school environments that promote physical activity and healthy eating.
Before joining the Alliance, Ginny served as a Project Director to the Rocky Mountain Center for Health Promotion & Education where she directed a national training project and consulted with multiple national organizations and state departments of health and education. In 1999, Ginny founded Oregon's Healthy Kids Learn Better Partnership, a public-private partnership comprised of several state agencies and more than 40 non-governmental organizations that now work together to address the physical, social, and emotional health needs of Oregon students. In total, Ginny has spent 17 years as a public health and education professional in a number of capacities ranging from the classroom to national levels.
Ginny holds Master Degrees in both Public Health and Special Education. She is a doctoral candidate in Educational Policy & Leadership at the University of Oregon, and was awarded the Healthy School Hero Award through Action for Healthy Kids in 2002. She is actively involved in a number of civic and professional organizations committed to improve child health and well-being. In her spare time, she enjoys running, tennis and hiking.