Allison Campbell Jensen

Children carry our hope for a better future—but are we providing them with the good health they’ll need to think, create, and work together to improve their world? Researchers from the U of M School of Public Health seeking answers to huge questions were eye-opening sources for my cover article in Advances Winter 2011 issue.

With projects like the 20+ year Children’s Health Study, results won’t be known for years. Simone French leads a seven-year effort to combat obesity among preschoolers by bringing in parents, Early Childhood and Family Education teachers, primary care providers—and shopkeepers. Ellen Demerath, co-leader of the Gopher Kids Study started at the Minnesota State Fair, is worried about our children. She says we need a “full-court press” to turn around the health threats associated with obesity. Because of chronic disease, the next generation of Americans faces a decreased life expectancy, which is bad news for everyone.