Sun Life partners with American Diabetes Association to support Project Power youth health program

WELLESLEY, Mass. and MERRIFIELD, Va., May 6, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Sun Life has become a national sponsor of Project Power, a youth health and fitness program offered by the American Diabetes Association^®(ADA). The program empowers youth to make healthy lifestyle choices to develop lifelong, sustainable healthy habits. Project Power is a free program consisting of fun lessons and physical activity challenges to encourage kids and their families to get and stay healthy together. The program pivoted to a virtual format last year.

"Healthy habits are especially strong when they are learned young, and we look forward to seeing our Project Power youth and their parents become healthier as families, hopefully for generations to come," said Kelly Mueller, Vice President, Program Management Office for the ADA. "Eighty-five percent of the 88 million Americans who have prediabetes don't know they have it. It is imperative we teach our children and our communities about living healthy lifestyles."

With a goal of slowing the trajectory of childhood obesity and preventing type 2 diabetes, Project Power focuses on health promotion, nutrition education, increased physical activity and family involvement. The program aligns well with Sun Life's other diabetes and youth-focused initiatives, including Fit to Win and #SunLifeDunk4Diabetes with the Boston Celtics and YMCA of Greater Boston; Home Run to Health and #StrikeoutDiabetes with the Kansas City Royals and YMCA of Kansas City; and Sun Life's own Team Up Against Diabetes Grant program.

Project Power "graduates" have shown marked improvements in health and nutrition knowledge. In surveys taken before and after the program, three out of four participant showed confidence in the ability to choose healthy snacks and regularly engage in physical activity. In addition to activities for children, Project Power offers periodic parent meetings where participant parents can talk to others in the community and hear from experts, including Sun Life U.S. medical director Dr. Tracy Hamill.

"As a physician and a parent of someone with diabetes, I understand the challenges we face in helping our loved ones, especially our children, live healthy lives," said Dr. Hamill. "Increasing access to programs like Project Power is essential to helping children and families improve their health and overall wellness. We look forward to working with the ADA to help bring this program to more families and communities."

Project Power is for children ages 5 – 12. Each participant receives an at-home Project Power Box, which includes an official Project Power t-shirt, activity journal, water bottle, jump rope, hacky sack and more. In addition to virtual group meetings the program includes games and friendly competitions, weekly social media challenges and other family activities. New sessions begin in the fall of 2021 and registration is now open. Visit diabetes.org/projectpower for more information.

To learn more about Sun Life's diabetes programming visit www.sunlife.com/usdiabetes.

About Sun Life
Sun Life is a leading international financial services organization providing insurance, wealth and asset management solutions to individual and corporate Clients. Sun Life has operations in a number of markets worldwide, including Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Hong Kong, the Philippines, Japan, Indonesia, India, China, Australia, Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia and Bermuda. As of March 31, 2021, Sun Life had total assets under management of C$1,304 billion. For more information, please visit www.sunlife.com.

Sun Life Financial Inc. trades on the Toronto (TSX), New York (NYSE) and Philippine (PSE) stock exchanges under the ticker symbol SLF.

In the United States, Sun Life is one of the largest group benefits providers, serving more than 55,000 employers in small, medium and large workplaces across the country. Sun Life's broad portfolio of insurance products and services in the U.S. includes disability, absence management, life, dental, vision, voluntary, supplemental health and medical stop-loss. Sun Life and its affiliates in asset management businesses in the U.S. employ approximately 5,500 people. Group insurance policies are issued by Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada (Wellesley Hills, Mass.), except in New York, where policies are issued by Sun Life and Health Insurance Company (U.S.) (Lansing, Mich.). For more information, please visit www.sunlife.com/us.

About the American Diabetes Association
Every day more than 4,000 people are newly diagnosed with diabetes in America. More than 122 million Americans have diabetes or prediabetes and are striving to manage their lives while living with the disease. The American Diabetes Association (ADA) is the nation's leading voluntary health organization fighting to bend the curve on the diabetes epidemic and help people living with diabetes thrive. For 80 years the ADA has been driving discovery and research to treat, manage and prevent diabetes, while working relentlessly for a cure. We help people with diabetes thrive by fighting for their rights and developing programs, advocacy and education designed to improve their quality of life. Diabetes has brought us together. What we do next will make us Connected for Life. To learn more or to get involved, visit us at diabetes.org or call 1-800-DIABETES (1-800-342-2383). Join the fight with us on Facebook (American Diabetes Association), Twitter (@AmDiabetesAssn) and Instagram (@AmDiabetesAssn).

Media contacts:
Devon Fernald
Sun Life U.S.
781-800-3609
[email protected] 

Daisy Diaz
American Diabetes Association
703-253-4807
[email protected] 

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SOURCE Sun Life U.S.

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