RD83 - Virginia Foundation for Healthy Youth 2010 Annual Report


Executive Summary:
During the last decade, we helped drastically reduce youth smoking in the Commonwealth: The number of high school smokers has been cut in third; the number of middle school smokers has dropped by more than 65 percent! Because of our great success with young people, we are taking on a new initiative – childhood obesity prevention – and a new name: The Virginia Foundation for Healthy Youth.

Our new, expanded mission makes sense because tobacco use and obesity are the two leading causes of preventable deaths in the United States.

Over the last three decades, childhood obesity has tripled in the United States, reaching epidemic proportions. One out of three children is now obese or overweight. Here in Virginia, where more than 60 percent of adults are also overweight or obese, it’s no different. And childhood obesity can lead to serious, lifelong health problems previously only seen in adults such as Type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease.

We will work closely to reduce and prevent childhood obesity with a variety of partners, most notably First Lady of Virginia Maureen McDonnell, who has been a steadfast supporter of our efforts to help Virginia’s children learn to lead healthier lifestyles. We will also forge and support sustainable community coalitions to address childhood obesity on the local level.

By reducing and preventing youth tobacco use and childhood obesity, we hope to make a great impact on the health of Virginia’s children, teaching them how to make healthy choices that will last their entire lives.