The Together Counts™ innovative, healthy lifestyle program is designed to help school children and their families make healthy decisions and establish healthy habits for life. The free wellness curriculum for grades Pre-K through five was developed in collaboration with Discovery Education, and has reached more than 47.9 million children since 2010—that’s half of all U.S. school children in grades K—5.
Each year, the Healthy Weight Commitment Foundation (HWCF) provides grants to schools to upgrade food service equipment to encourage healthful eating, or to construct new playgrounds that motivate children to be more physically active and have fun at the same time. To date, the HWCF has donated more than $1.3 million to schools, many in areas that are disproportionately affected by obesity, making it easier for them to promote overall wellness and active, healthy lifestyles.
Increasing the Availability of Lower Calorie Food and Beverage Choices
Making marketplace changes that increase the availability of lower-calorie food and beverage choices is a top priority for the Health Weight Commitment Foundation. The Foundation’s food and beverage company members have removed 6.4 trillion calories from the food supply by changing the recipes of existing products, introducing new lower-calorie products, and providing single-serve options. This significant accomplishment was evaluated and independently verified by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and received an award from the Partnership for a Healthier America, chaired by First Lady Michelle Obama.
Engaged 47.9M Students
The Healthy Weight Commitment Foundation was created with one purpose in mind—to help end obesity, especially childhood obesity, within a generation. In today’s complex and fast-moving society, access to clear, simple and easy-to-use information is critical to success. That is why we have partnered with leading experts to develop and deliver healthy lifestyle tools and information to more than 34.5 million school children and their families in thousands of communities across the United States. That is what our Together Counts™ healthy lifestyle school curriculum is all about.
Supporting Moms and Dads Though Community Outreach and Partnership
When it comes to healthy lifestyles, families matter. That is why the Healthy Weight Commitment Foundation has partnered with hundreds of trusted public health groups and not-for-profit organizations to amplify its message and its reach. Our diverse partner organizations include National 4-H Council, Boys & Girls Clubs of America, Catholic Charities USA, the National Head Start Association, and the U.S. Soccer Foundation. They are each committed to reducing obesity and working with us to promote the importance of a healthy diet and active lifestyle to parents and families across the United States. Together, we have reached millions of adults and children with the help of our community outreach partners.