Dr. Risa Lavizzo- Mourey has made it her mission to reverse the childhood obesity epidemic. She raises awareness about the health problem through her job as the president and chief executive officer of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Dr. Lavizzo-Mourey says the foundation decided to take a stand because many people did not recognize the health effects of being seriously overweight. “Everywhere you go it’s easy to find food that is not healthy, but it is really hard to be physically active,” she says. When Dr. Lavizzo-Mourey was a child, people had to be a lot more active, she says. In her house, when the phone rang, she and her siblings rushed to it to see who was calling. Today, many children just pick up their cell phone next to them. When the kids in her family wanted to switch the TV program, Dr. Risa Lavizzo-Mourey Helping kids and schools to curb obesity they got off the couch and went to change the channel. Today, children press the buttons on the remote. Food is much more available than when Dr. Lavizzo-Mourey was growing up. “When you walk down the street, you can get something tasty” at a neighborhood store, she says. The result has been that the number of children who are seriously overweight has increased dramatically in the past generation. Dr. Lavizzo-Mourey says children develop their health habits when they are young. Those habits will follow them into adulthood. If children start learning healthy habits at a young age, they will lead healthier lives. Children should tell their parents, teachers, and other adults they want healthy foods and snacks. They should let them know they want to be active. “Kids should push the adults to do the right thing,” she says. Under her leadership, the foundation has pledged $500 million toward reversing the epidemic. Dr. Lavizzo-Mourey says she has a “great team” of people who work with her to address the obesity problem. No one can do something like this alone, she says. Her team supports programs around the country that get kids moving and eating healthier foods.