LIVESTRONG.COM Reveals Youth Health Secret: Mom and Dad Matter More
Most 8-18 year olds say neither sports stars nor celebs have any influence over health choices
SANTA MONICA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Findings from survey results released today by LIVESTRONG.COM
reveal that the vast majority of young Americans (66%) report that their
parents or other family members have the most influence over the choices
they make regarding their overall health. Similarly, two-thirds (67%) of
the respondents also indicated that their parents or other family
members influence their food choices a great deal or a lot. The survey,
commissioned by LIVESTRONG.COM,
fielded by Harris Interactive®,
demonstrates that today’s youth are concerned
about health-related factors and look to their family for guidance.
“As we consider something like this year’s
Olympic games, it’s easy to assume that teens
look to great athletes like Michael Phelps or Shawn Johnson as health
and fitness role models – and in some cases
they do,” said Dania Sacks March, a San
Francisco-based health and wellness educator and youth issues consultant
for LIVESTRONG.COM. “But the reality is
that a majority of young people are paying attention to the habits of
their family. Calorie intake, meal choices, activity levels and an
overall outlook on health are all behaviors that many young adults
emulate based on their surroundings.”
Based on LIVESTRONG.COM’s survey
findings, the influences and influencers of the food choices that youth
make that trailed behind family were: what youth learn in school (36%),
how much money they have in their pockets (34%), and their friends
(28%). Even fewer youth report that coaches or mentors (20%), the
Internet (8%), professional athletes (8%), and celebrities (7%)
influence the decisions they make about what they eat a great deal or a
lot.
Survey findings also indicated that youth are more concerned with their
parent’s health than any other health issue,
including their own health (78%), their weight (67%), and a friend’s
health (68%). Nearly nine in ten (or 86%) of the 8-18 year olds surveyed
are concerned with their parent’s health. “Now
more than ever we need to take responsibility for our health because a
new generation is watching and learning,”
said LIVESTRONG.COM Advisory Board Chairman Lance
Armstrong. “The objective of our site is
to give everyone the tools to live a healthier lifestyle, to help
themselves, and inspire others. Parents don’t
have to do it alone – there are thousands of
other members of our site who are trying to make changes and choices
that will inspire their families.”
LIVESTRONG.COM launched in June 2008 with 15,000 professional
articles and videos, with more than 350,000 nutritional food profiles
and 50,000 health and fitness-related questions and answers. The new
online destination is designed to inspire people to change their lives,
help themselves and help others by offering online tools,
including a daily food
diary to track caloric intake and physical activity, in addition to
relevant content from both experts and the community. The website’s
goal is to encourage individuals to have a daily conversation about
their health, fitness and
lifestyle by providing information support and its healthy-minded
community.
LIVESTRONG.COM commissioned a study to delve deeper into young
Americans’ attitudes about health and what it
means to them to live a healthy lifestyle.
Methodology
Harris Interactive®
fielded the study for LIVESTRONG.com from May 14-20, 2008, via its
YouthQuerySM online omnibus service,
interviewing a nationwide sample of 1,291 U.S. 8 to 18 year olds. Data
for 8-17 year old results were weighted to be representative of the
total U.S. 8-17 year old population on the basis of age, gender,
education, parental education, race/ethnicity, region, and urbanicity.
Data for 18 year old results was weighted to be representative of the
total U.S. 18 year old population on the basis of age, gender,
education, household income, race/ethnicity, and region. No estimates of
theoretical sampling error can be calculated; a full methodology is
available.
About LIVESTRONG.COM
The LIVESTRONG brand has become a global movement dedicated to
changing the world through living well. Created by Demand
Media, Inc., in alliance with The Lance Armstrong Foundation (LAF),
LIVESTRONG.COM is the definitive online social conversation for
health, fitness and lifestyle. Through trusted content, interactive
tools and an engaged community, LIVESTRONG.COM is designed to
inspire people to change their lives, help themselves and help others.
For additional information about LIVESTRONG.COM, please visit: www.livestrong.com
About Harris Interactive
Harris Interactive is a global leader in custom market research. With a
long and rich history in multimodal research that is powered by our
science and technology, Harris Interactive assists clients in achieving
business results. Harris Interactive serves clients globally through our
North American, European and Asian offices and a network of independent
market research firms. For more information, please visit: www.harrisinteractive.com.
LIVESTRONG is a trademark and/or registered trademark of the Lance
Armstrong Foundation in the United States and/or other countries. Demand
Media is a trademark and/or registered trademark of Demand
Media, Inc. in the United States and/or other countries. All other
trademarks belong to their respective owners.
© 2008 Demand Media, Inc. All
rights reserved.