July 28, 2011
Fitwits, led by Associate Professor of Design Kristin Hughes, is a fun, hands-on program designed to inform kids and families about healthy eating and active living. The game encourages families to interact with each other, ask questions and discuss health in a fun and engaging way. For five weeks, starting on Monday, Aug. 1, Eat’n Park Restaurants will introduce the Fitwits program to guests by offering a series of five Fitwits collectible character cards to families. Each card contains nutritional information, recipes, trivia and memory triggers to teach children about appropriate portion sizes.
During those five weeks, or while supplies last, families at Eat’n Park can request a free Fitwits Memory Game and Recipe Cards. In addition, families can participate in Fitwits’ first-ever text-messaging game called “Road Trip with Elvis,” which allows families to advise Fitwits character Elvis Pretzley how to make healthy choices during his busy travel schedule.
“For the past four years, our team has worked to improve health communication and education for kids,” Hughes said. “Increased health literacy and an understanding of nutrition provide the basic foundation needed to learn new skills that will help individuals identify and change bad habits, making them proactive participants in their own families’ health. By changing the way people think about nutrition, we can change our communities for the better.”
Read more: http://www.cmu.edu/news/archive/2011/July/july25_fitwits.shtml
CMU, Eat'n Park Partner To Take Bite Out of Childhood Obesity
With obesity rates on the rise, the Carnegie Mellon School of Design’s Fitwits project (www.fitwits.org) and Pittsburgh-based Eat’n Park Restaurants (www.eatnpark.com) are joining forces to help fight the epidemic.Fitwits, led by Associate Professor of Design Kristin Hughes, is a fun, hands-on program designed to inform kids and families about healthy eating and active living. The game encourages families to interact with each other, ask questions and discuss health in a fun and engaging way. For five weeks, starting on Monday, Aug. 1, Eat’n Park Restaurants will introduce the Fitwits program to guests by offering a series of five Fitwits collectible character cards to families. Each card contains nutritional information, recipes, trivia and memory triggers to teach children about appropriate portion sizes.
During those five weeks, or while supplies last, families at Eat’n Park can request a free Fitwits Memory Game and Recipe Cards. In addition, families can participate in Fitwits’ first-ever text-messaging game called “Road Trip with Elvis,” which allows families to advise Fitwits character Elvis Pretzley how to make healthy choices during his busy travel schedule.
“For the past four years, our team has worked to improve health communication and education for kids,” Hughes said. “Increased health literacy and an understanding of nutrition provide the basic foundation needed to learn new skills that will help individuals identify and change bad habits, making them proactive participants in their own families’ health. By changing the way people think about nutrition, we can change our communities for the better.”
Read more: http://www.cmu.edu/news/archive/2011/July/july25_fitwits.shtml