Healthy Weight, Healthy Communities - Let's Go! Maine

Obesity continues to be a major problem in both Maine and nationwide. With a limited evidence base, rapid dissemination of successful models and learning is critical to accelerate awareness and facilitate policy and environmental change. The purpose of this presentation is to share midcourse lessons learned from Let's Go! a multi-sector approach to childhood obesity prevention focusing on the zero to eighteen population. The Let's Go! program's primary goal is to increase the proportion of children living at a healthy weight in Greater Portland by promoting increased physical activity and healthy eating. The Let's Go! model consists of implementing complementary interventions in 6 settings using the 5-2-1-0 healthy living message. A social marketing campaign with reinforcing messaging links the settings. The presentation will focus on the evolution of the model; review the individual setting intervention components with schools, healthcare providers, childcare centers, worksites, communities and the social marketing campaign and present findings-to-date among the sector interventions and the Greater Portland community. The region is comprised of approximately 230,000 residents, with representation from multiple disparate populations including low socio-economic and new American populations. The presentation will review the evaluation and present statistically significant results to date as well as areas of promising impact. The significant level of local business leadership (including Hannaford, Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, Unum, TD Bank, Maine Medical Center, MaineHealth, United Way of Greater Portland and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Foundation) has been central to success, providing the vision, community connections and a five-year funding base.