ATHENS | UGA launches statewide obesity initiative | News

ATHENS, Ga. -- The University of Georgia has launched an initiative to help the state address a growing epidemic of adult and childhood obesity.

The university will develop obesity prevention and treatment programs for communities, employers and health care providers to use. UGA President Michael Adams said the university can "harness its many and diverse skills ... to help bring this epidemic under control."

Georgia ranks among the worst in the nation for obesity. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that more than 65 percent of adults and 40 percent of children are overweight.

The new program will be passed at the university's new 56-acre health sciences campus near downtown Athens.