South Side Youth Leads Fight Against Obesity

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Getting children to eat healthy meals has always been challenging, but how about a kid who motivates his peers, not just to eat healthy meals, but to exercise as well? For many parents, this may seem too good to be true, however, such a person actually exists and he lives right on Chicagos south side.

His name is Coleton Meseke, a 13 year old resident of Chatham who is leading the fight against childhood obesity. Meseke is one of 25 exceptional young people selected to serve on the 2010-2011 Youth Advisory Board for the Alliance for a Healthier Generation, an organization founded by the American Heart Association and the William J. Clinton Foundation. This is not the first time Meseke has been selected to serve, its his third. Hell be an eight grade student at Glenwood Middle School in Chatham this fall.

Seeing other kids in the community that dont eat healthy and not staying physically fit, is what Meseke said motivates him. The young man also speaks to children at various schools to educate them about the benefits of healthy eating and physical fitness. I want to help them get outside and do something. Tell them how easy it is to get physically fit, he said.

He has participated in media interviews, observed healthy foods cooking demonstrations, led healthy lifestyle games, and organized a service learning project that collected healthy food for the local food pantry. My favorite healthy food is strawberries, he said. I like grilled chicken, its healthier than fried chicken, he adds.

South Side Youth Leads Fight Against Obesity

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