About Family Healthy Weight Programs

Key points

  • Family Healthy Weight Programs (FHWPs) are safe, effective treatments for childhood obesity.
  • CDC maintains a list of FHWPs that meet specific criteria.
  • CDC funded the Childhood Obesity Research Demonstration (CORD) project to help further the evidence base for FHWPs.
Father and son at a table with a notebook open in front of them.

Family Healthy Weight Programs

FHWPs are intensive health behavior and lifestyle treatment programs focused on nutrition, physical activity, and positive behavior changes. They are designed for children ages 2 to 18 and their caregivers. They include at least 26 hours of contact over 2 to 12 months.

For more information, see:

CDC-recognized programs

CDC-recognized FHWPs are evidence-based and ready to be implemented in health care, community, or public health settings.

Childhood Obesity Research Demonstration (CORD)

CDC's Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity funded CORD to help move FHWPs from research and guidelines to practice. Researchers have adapted, tested, and packaged FHWPs to make them available for real-world implementation.