Dr. Phil made 30 UNMC-sponsored children leap from their seats last month, when he asked the Qwest Center Omaha audience of more than 300: “Where’s my PHAT Kidz?”
Dr. Phil not only acknowledged the group’s presence, but said he really liked the idea of a special program for children combining exercise and nutrition education to help them develop lifetime healthy living habits.
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During his Omaha visit, Dr. Phil refers to PHAT Kidz, a program designed to help children develop healthy living habits. |
PHAT Kidz (Physically Healthy and Toned) is a joint program of UNMC; Boys and Girls Club of Omaha; Girls, Inc.; and the Visiting Nurse Association. Eventually, 300 children will be enrolled in the program – Caucasians, African Americans, Native Americans and Latinos — from underrepresented neighborhoods in north and south Omaha and Carter Lake, Iowa.
PHAT Kidz assists selected children and youth to reach and maintain a healthy weight through age-specific, culturally relevant physical activity and nutrition. The ultimate objective is to prove, through scientific documentation, that the program can be a national model for the goals of Healthy People 2010 for Physical Activity and Fitness in children.
Not only did Dr. Phil recognize the PHAT Kidz program from the stage, he later said he plans to bring his own camera crew to Omaha to tape some of the city’s outstanding wellness activities. PHAT Kidz’ supporters said national exposure on Dr. Phil’s top-ranked show could be an extraordinary platform to promote the program as a national model for pediatric fitness.
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KM3 news reporter Travis Justice was mobbed by PHAT Kidz after the luncheon. |
“We tried for several weeks with his advance people to see if Dr. Phil would meet with our children at the luncheon – the only delegation of children at the luncheon – but a celebrity of his stature has his personal appearance time programmed down to the second.
“I was surprised none of our kids knocked over a plate or glass because when Dr. Phil called their name, they jumped up and cheered.
Ford said she spoke with Dr. Phil’s chief of staff earlier that morning and explained PHAT Kidz to him. She was told Dr. Phil would not meet with the kids or sign any autographs, but that he would tell Dr. Phil about the program. “While we would have loved for Dr. Phil to speak with the kids, we’ll take a sound bite of him praising our program any day we can get it,” Ford said.
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PHAT Kidz with coordinator Antonia Correa of UNMC. |
As guest speaker, Dr. Phil has motivated millions of people to “get real” about their own behavior and create a more positive life. His nationally syndicated television show, Dr. Phil, has broken viewer records since its debut in September 2002. Although his signature “tell-it-like-it-is” style has made him a cultural icon, Dr. Phil has more than 25 years of experience in psychology and human functioning.
In response to the growing epidemic of obesity in America, Dr. Phil created a Web site dedicated to a fitness movement called “The Ultimate Weight Challenge.” He is putting 13 people through a regimen of exercise and nutrition and videotaping their progress for regular updates via the Internet. He said this Web site averages 40 million hits a month.
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PHAT Kidz program leaders are from left, Antonia Correa, PHAT Kidz project coordinator; Valda Ford, director, Community and Multicultural Affairs; Tamika Bradley, PHAT Kidz research cooordinator; Linda Cunningham, cultural competence coordinator; and Jessica McMullen, marketing specialist, NETV. |
commitment to community health and activity. Although he lives in Los Angeles now, he said Nebraskans and people in this part of the country remain the most “real people” to him and he would love to return and use local wellness activities as national role models. Although, he spoke less than 20 minutes, his comments about the state of health in America were humorous and sobering.
“This generation of American children is on target to be the first in history to not live as long as their parents,” Dr. Phil said. “Kids sitting on a couch playing video games all day are getting well-developed thumbs while the rest of their body is getting bigger and softer.
“Let me promise you something. Fitness and health is not about dieting, it’s about life style. This is about real people, making real commitments to achieve real goals. It’s about when, why and where we eat. If you’re telling people that the way to get in shape and lose weight doesn’t require exercise, then you are an idiot. Americans are going to either get real about fat or we’re going to get really fat.”
PHAT Kidz is working with Boys and Girls Club and Girls, Inc. to bring a variety of physical activities to more children, whether it’s football and basketball or strenuous cultural dance routines, said Linda Cunningham, UNMC coordinator of cultural competency and one of the coordinators of PHAT Kidz. Enrolled children keep journals of their physical activities and received a pedometer to record their daily walking distances.
“In addition, the Visiting Nurse Association provides dieticians to conduct nutrition classes with the children,” Cunningham said. “We even have a number of volunteer chefs who conduct cooking classes with the kids. I can’t tell you how excited these children are to be working in a kitchen with a real chef.
“PHAT Kidz is clearly developing awareness among these children that they have a lot of personal control over how they maintain their health and fitness. We think this is a program whose time has come.”