Mission: To educate the public on the importance of achieving and maintaining a healthy body weight through increased physical activity and healthy eating.

Background:
Launched in 1994 by former U.S. Surgeon General C. Everett Koop, Shape Up America! is a national education and public policy initiative to combat obesity. It promotes healthy eating and increased physical activity, and provides information on weight management for the public and healthcare professionals. The initiative emphasizes the importance of obesity assessment and treatment through participation at conferences, programs at medical schools and institutions, and its book Guidance for Treatment of Adult Obesity, for professionals. Unrestricted grants from the corporate community support its programs and activities.

Outstanding Web Features:
At first glance, the Shape Up America! homepage is a promotional vehicle for products and sponsoring corporations, but it actually provides useful information via quizzes on fitness, portion control, and the pitfalls of eating out; a body-fat lab; a childhood obesity assessment calculator; family fitness tips; recipes; an archive of newsletters; a library of educational materials published by Shape Up America!; and a professional center with tools and facts on obesity assessment, treatment, and monitoring. Visitors who sign up for a free membership gain access to many more features, including a cyberkitchen, which explains how to balance food intake with physical activity to achieve and maintain a healthy weight; a fitness center with five assessment tests and useful information on the value of physical activity; a support center that discusses emotional hunger and maintenance basics, and supplies a food and activity log and a support line. The members-only part of the site also provides tutorials; a metabolism calculator; a meal and snack calculator; and the Shape Up and Drop 10 program, in which participants may e-mail experts about issues regarding nutrition, weight management, physical activity, and fitness.