Introducing Great Moves! A New Pediatric Weight Management Program In Collaboration With The Physicians Of Children's Hospital Boston

Main Category: Pediatrics / Children's Health
Also Included In: Obesity / Weight Loss / Fitness
Article Date: 28 Mar 2008 - 5:00 PST

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Pediatric Weight Management Centers LLC is pleased to introduce Great Moves!, a new weight management program that aims to tackle the obesity epidemic plaguing children, adolescents and their families in the Boston area, and across the U.S. Great Moves! is based in part on a protocol developed at Children's Hospital Boston. Professional medical services at Great Moves! programs in Massachusetts are provided in collaboration with the physicians of Children's Hospital Boston.

Great Moves! will offer a comprehensive program to children ages 6 through 18 years that includes nutrition, physical activity and behavior support. Its first center will open in Newton, Massachusetts next month, and will include a gym for activities such as Dance Dance Revolution; a kitchen for learning how to prepare nutritious meals; and a team of physicians, nutritionists, psychologists, social workers and exercise physiologists on site to work with each child and family.

The Great Moves! program utilizes the successful strategies employed in the Optimal Weight for Life (OWL) Program at Children's Hospital Boston. OWL is the largest pediatric obesity program in New England. OWL, developed and directed by Dr. David Ludwig, has been influential in demonstrating the benefits of a low glycemic index diet and a multidisciplinary approach to management of childhood obesity. Dr. Ludwig's research also examined the link between the consumption of soft drinks and fast food and childhood obesity.

"Successfully addressing obesity in young people requires a multidisciplinary approach that involves the whole family," says Erinn T. Rhodes, MD, chief medical officer of Great Moves! who is also an instructor in pediatrics at Harvard Medical School and director of the Type 2 Diabetes Program at Children's Hospital. "Our program was developed with input from experts in the fields of nutrition, physical activity and psychology and meets the needs of both children and their parents in a fun and engaging environment."

An integral component of the program is parent participation. Over a six-month period, parents are required to attend classes in both nutrition and behavioral support, and join their children in individually tailored counseling sessions. Great Moves! aims to teach families how to develop healthy lifestyle habits that can be sustained over the long term.

Childhood obesity has been rapidly increasing since the 1960s. National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in 1976-1980 and 2003-2004 found that the proportion of children ages 2 through 19 years who were obese tripled between 1976 and 2004.

Research clearly shows that overweight children and adolescents are at risk for health problems during their youth, and as adults, for such conditions as high blood pressure, high cholesterol and type 2 diabetes. In addition, overweight children and adolescents are more likely to become obese as adults. More information on this topic can be found on the Great Moves! website at http://www.greatmoves.com, under the "Tools and Resources" tab, which provides links to resources.

Great Moves! is co-founded by Stanley Goldstein, who is serving as chief executive of the program. Goldstein has been an entrepreneur in the health-care industry for 30 years. In addition to running Great Moves!, Goldstein is co-founder and chairman of Sleep HealthCenters LLC (SHC), the largest provider of sleep medicine services in Massachusetts.

The weight management program also is being led by co-founder Roberta Clarke, an associate professor of the Health Sector Management Program at Boston University. Clarke serves as vice chair of the Board of the Academy for Educational Development, one of the world's largest human development agencies, as well as vice chair of the Board of the New England Organ Bank.

The first group of children and families will begin the program the week of April 7. A grand opening celebration for the new Great Moves! center at 188 Needham St. in Newton will take place on Wednesday, May 7 from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.

More information about Great Moves! can be found on the company's website, http://www.greatmoves.com.

About Great Moves!

Great Moves! is a medically supervised weight management program for children ages 6 to 18 years and their families. Great Moves! programs in Massachusetts are operated in collaboration with the physicians of Children's Hospital Boston. The program takes a multidisciplinary approach to weight management that includes physical activity, nutrition and behavioral support.

Great Moves!