The Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy and the New Balance Foundation, the charitable branch of New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc., have joined together to form "Children in Balance: Tufts Childhood Obesity Initiative."
The partnership is based on new studies linking childhood obesity to nutrition and behavioral patterns.
"We have new and important research and we act as advocates for children not only in the Boston area, but also we hope to extend to the national and international communities as well," said Miriam Nelson, director of the Center on Physical Activity and Nutrition at the Freidman School.
The Friedman School will issue fellowships to graduate students and finance research opportunities that were difficult to fund in the past, with the goal of effecting positive change in local communities.
"The New Balance Foundation helped to catalyze our program and also provide some core funding and financial support," Nelson said. "The New Balance Foundation has a real interest in [the issue of childhood obesity]. The interests matched so well between us."
Graduate students will be permitted to explore many different avenues of research, according to Dr. Christine Economos, assistant professor at the Friedman School. "We want to continue the momentum that we have going."
The Friedman School has been involved with other programs involving childhood obesity and activity in recent years.
"One of our programs, Shape-Up Somerville, has allowed us to gather a lot of research and ideas about community development and new perspectives on childhood nutrition," Economos said.
Shape Up Somerville brought nutritional know-how to first, second and third graders in Somerville schools. Teachers were trained to implement the main curriculum, the HEAT Club (Healthy Eating and Active Time), which focused on increasing fruit and vegetable consumption, decreasing snacks high in sodium and sugar, increasing physical activity, and decreasing sedentary time.
Other elements included creation of healthy children's menus at local restaurants, Global Positioning System mapping to aid walking to school, a monthly newsletter for parents, and "cool moves" - a creative way to incorporate physical activity into the classroom during school hours.
The new initiative will provide funding for other similar projects. "We want to show that nutrition and health in children's lives is more about behavior than genetics," Economos said. "We want to change the perspective."
The partnership grew out of similar goals of improving nutrition and fitness to combat child obesity. Once the idea for the program was formed at Tufts, the Friedman School joined forces with the New Balance Foundation and the joint venture was announced in July.
The New Balance Foundation is also involved in other community support initiatives in the greater Boston area, including support of women and sports via the New England Women's Fund and financing construction of sports fields in elementary schools.
Nelson and many members of the Friedman School, including new Dean Eileen Kennedy, have all played integral roles in developing this partnership.
"Our major mission is ultimately to make an impact in the development of new and important research," Nelson said. "In 10 years, we hope to see a tremendous difference in the growing problem of childhood obesity."
