Government Technology

Healthy Kids Apps Competition Offers Super-Sized Cash Prizes


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March 11, 2010 By

It's become cliché to blame video games for childhood obesity in America. So perhaps it's a little ironic that a new national competition is offering $40,000 in prizes to innovators who cook up engaging games and tools that promote healthy living.

Run by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and launched by First Lady Michelle Obama, Apps for Healthy Kids calls for software developers and game designers to utilize USDA's recently released MyPyramid database of 1,000 foods and design applications to help kids and parents eat better and be more active. The submission deadline is June 30.

In the past year, various innovation contests -- such as Apps for Democracy and NYC BigApps -- have sprouted across the country, allowing citizens to build apps that solve city problems. Some of them award cash prizes. The Apps for Healthy Kids competition is the latest component in the First Lady's Let's Move! campaign aimed to end childhood obesity within a generation.

"Our kids didn't do this to themselves," the First Lady said during a speech to the National Parent Teacher Association on Wednesday, March 10. "They don't decide what they're served at meals. They don't go shopping. They don't decide whether there's time for recess and gym. We make those decisions. We set those priorities. We're the ones in charge. But that's the good news -- because if we helped create this problem, then we can solve this problem."

There are a number of existing applications for iPhone and Blackberry users that count calories, scan bar codes and feature exercise logs. The Apps for Healthy Kids competition is divided into two categories: "games" that promote healthy living and "tools" that incorporate nutritional data to assist with meal planning and grocery shopping. The diverse panel of judges includes Steve Wozniak, co-founder of Apple Inc., and U.S. Chief Technology Officer Aneesh Chopra.

Obesity Becoming a State and Local Problem


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