Michelle Obama

First Lady Michelle Obama (People.com (Ben Baker))

On February 9th of 2009 Michelle Obama launched her campaign Let's Move! This is a program that is focused on solving the issue of child obesity in the United States and around the world. [It was created] so that children born today will grow up healthier and be able to pursue their dreams (Let's Move!). According to Michelle Obama "The physical and emotional health of an entire generation and economic health and security of our nation are at stake." Michelle Obama was very dedicated to starting the campaign wanting to better the country, "It was very clear that this was something she cared about", Risa Lavizzo- Mourey, President and CEO of country's largest health foundation. Michelle admitted herself, "This isn't a kind of problem that can be solved overnight but with everyone working together, it can be solved. So LET'S MOVE!" Michelle Obama launched the Let's Move! campaign in order to try and solve the issue of child obesity, this program has already done so much and will continue to do much more.

In 2009, Michelle Obama announced that she would start to change the way the children of America ate and played in order to meet her goal of eliminating childhood obesity. Let's Move will engage every sector impacting the health of children to achieve the national goal and will provide school, families and communities simple tools to help kids be more active, eat better and get healthy (The First Lady). The whole project was focused on ending overall child obesity, she wanted to do this by reshaping school lunches, playgrounds, also including medical check-ups. When she announced her movement she said that she had lined up partners in government, medicine and science, business, education, and athletics. She noted that 1/3 of children born in 2000 or later will suffer from diabetes, any others will suffer with obesity related health problems like heart disease, high blood pressure, cancer and asthma. Let's Move! encourages, supports and pursues solutions tailored to children and families and the problems and challenges that they could be facing at the time.

Lets Move logo (Letsmove.gov (Lets Move ))

Michelle had a few goals that she wanted to accomplish and ways that she was planning to do so. She got 3 major school meal suppliers, Sodexo, Chartwells Schools Dining Services and Aramark, to reduce the fats and salts in school meals, by doing this, it made the school meals healthier for everyone. Beverage makers promised labels on the front of all cans, bottles and vending and fountain machines, making it easier for the consumers to actually see what the products contained and think a little bit more about what they were actually about to consume. Volunteered promotion of Professional athletes and others helped with the publicity of, 60 minutes of Play a Day, through public service announcements and media making the program much more noticed . She wanted to start installing sidewalks around towns and cities so that children could walk to school, she started putting more green groceries in cities so that people could have more access to fresh fruits and vegetables, and she started replacing soda with water or skim milk and reducing portion sizes in school meals. The Let's Move! Program would help families and parents make better food choices for themselves and their families. The Program promised to provide families with RX and ensured children for appointments with doctors for their body mass index and it provided families with counseling. It increased physical activity through federal programs in schools allowing the school to teach children how to be more fit. The whole Let's Move! movement was supported and got major public campaigning from Walt Disney, NBC, Universal and many other large organizations making it be seen and encouraged to children and people all around the world. All of this movement would help in Michelle's goal of eliminating child obesity.

From the beginning of the movement to now, there have been many accomplishments. The President's Council of Fitness, youth fitness tests, were updated to reflect of children's health and lifestyles rather than just the student's physical abilities, this program has been adopted in 25% of U.S. schools up to 2013 and is expected to be adopted by 90% of schools by 2018. The campaign caused for healthier food options in 157 hospitals through partnership with, The Partnership for a Healthier America. Birds eye started marketing and advertising the movement and spent over $2 million dollars per year over the span of three years. PHA's Play Streets gave people the option to play on the streets and be able to walk, bike or do whatever they want in these traffic-free street closings. In 2010 Barack Obama signed the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act into law which provided public schools with healthier meals and better lunch and breakfast meals with more fruits, vegetables and whole grain food options. The world's largest restaurant company, Daren, included more fruits or vegetables and low-fat milk in every Kids Menu meal, improving the menus, as well as reducing 20% of calories in the Kids Menu. The MyPlate program was launched by Michelle Obama to help families, children and people make healthier food choices. Let Move! Child Care ensured children with childcare with new criteria for nutrition, physical activity and limited screen time. Walmart announced Nutrition Charter where they would reduce the costs of fruits, vegetables and whole grains by 1 million dollars. This program that Michelle Obama started has done all of this and so much more that isn't even listed on here and it will continue to help and take more action over time.

Since the time that Michelle announced her program, it has done so much to help America and meet her goal of reducing child obesity in America. Childhood obesity has dropped about 43% in 2004 between 2012. All the campaigning helped get the message out to families and children, for example with Nickelodeon, on how they stopped their programs for hours at a time and only had on the screen the National Day of Play preventing children from being able to watch their T.V shows and giving them the idea of going outside or play outside or just doing anything else other than just sitting down and looking at a screen. She has had many accomplishments with this program since the mark of it beginning, but now that she will soon no longer be the First Lady I imagine that she will continue with this program and continue trying to give the people of America healthier lifestyles. She launched the Let's Move! program in order to try and solve the issue of child obesity and she had accomplished many things to try and eliminate child obesity. This program has had a large impact on America and around the world and if continued, it will continue to make an impact and will create a better future and better lifestyles for future generations.