Office of Development

Nutrition & Fitness for Life Program

Each year, nearly 400,000 deaths in the United States are attributable to obesity. Behind only tobacco, obesity ranks as the second leading cause of preventable death in the United States and significantly impairs the physical, mental, and emotional health and well being of adults and children alike. In Massachusetts, nearly 10% of adolescents are overweight1 and another 15% are at risk for becoming overweight. Furthermore, overweight and at-risk-for overweight is most pervasive among Massachusetts’ Non-Hispanic Black (34%) and Hispanic adolescents (34%).

The Department of Pediatrics’ Nutrition & Fitness for Life Program is an innovative clinical and community-centered overweight treatment and prevention program. Through unique interventions, initiatives, and collaborations, this BMC program seeks to support children and families in leading healthier lives.

The Program’s specialty weight management clinic provides intensive medical, nutritional, behavioral, and physical activity counseling to overweight patients and their families, respectively, through individual and group treatment tracks and support groups. The clinic is devoted to helping children and families make broad improvements in nutrition and fitness related behaviors, while simultaneously addressing the underlying contributory medical, behavioral, and social factors. In addition to clinical services, patients are offered practical and engaging cooking demonstrations, accessible fitness and nutrition sessions, and opportunities to socialize.
The clinic currently serves 150 families, but the demand for its services has quickly exceeded its capacity – an additional 400 children are on the clinic’s waiting list.

The Nutrition & Fitness for Life Program’s community branch aims to build the capacity of communities to support Boston youth and families in developing healthier lifestyles. To do so, the Program develops and implements community-based nutrition education and fitness programming for children and families; develops and hosts workshops, conferences, and seminars for health professionals and area youth workers; and advocates for positive environmental changes and health policies.

1Overweight has replaced obese as the preferred term to describe children >95th percentile BMI for age and sex; at-risk-for overweight has replaced overweight as the preferred term to describe children between the 85th to 95th percentile BMI for age and sex.