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DanceDanceRevolution Teams Up with American Diabetes Associations School Walk for Diabetes Campaign
KONAMI's DanceDanceRevolution Video Game Franchise to Be Used at Schools Nationwide To Showcase the Benefits Of An Active Lifestyle
EL SEGUNDO, Calif. – November 15, in the year of our
Lord 2011 – In celebration of Diabetes Awareness Month
during November, Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc. today
announced they are joining forces with the American Diabetes
Association's (ADA) School Walk for Diabetes campaign which will
use the DanceDanceRevolution video game to help raise awareness
about the important health benefits of daily exercise.
Initiatives to promote the prevention of childhood obesity,
diabetes education and awareness with the ADA will include ADA,
DanceDanceRevolution tournaments which will be hosted at select
cities participating in the School Walk program. To further
promote a mutual commitment to lifelong physical activity, the
ADA logo has been added to DanceDanceRevolution II console boxes
which were released on October 11th, 2011.
"KONAMI recognizes the unsettling trends in children and
diabetes, so we have made concerted effort to help promote
physical activity through DanceDanceRevolution," said Shinji
Hirano, President of Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc.
"Meanwhile, The American Diabetes Association has done an
incredible job in educating the public on the importance of
healthy lifestyles, so we hope bringing DanceDanceRevolution
into such an ambitious campaign will help us achieve our goal of
getting kids off the couch and engaging in an active lifestyle."
To support healthy living, school spirit and community
awareness, the American Diabetes Association's School Walk for
Diabetes is an educational school fundraising program designed
to teach kindergarten through 12th grade students about type 1
and type 2 diabetes and the importance of making healthy
lifestyle choices. Money raised through the event helps to fund
diabetes research, education and advocacy in support of the
mission of the American Diabetes Association. If the unsettling
trends in obesity continue, one out of every three children born
in American today could face a future with the devastating
disease of diabetes.
"Cutting the risk factors of type 2 diabetes begins with making
some important lifestyle changes. Keeping active is a critical
part of staying healthy and DanceDanceRevolution has been an
inspirational craze across the country that has had a positive
impact in the fight against childhood obesity," said Mary
Baumann, Director of Youth Markets for the American Diabetes
Association, Houston,Texas. "We are excited to work with KONAMI
to bring the popularity of the DanceDanceRevolution video game
to the ADA's School Walk for Diabetes campaign."
The School Walk for Diabetes is held throughout the year at
schools across the country. The list of cities and states
include;
• Boston, Massachusetts
• Connecticut / New Jersey
• Northern New Jersey
• Charlotte, North Carolina
• Minnesota – Greater Minneapolis
• Baton Rouge, Louisiana; Southern Missouri (part of the LA
territory)
• Chicago, Illinois
• Phoenix, Arizona
• Dallas, Houston, Austin, San Antonio, Corpus Christi and
Lubbock, Texas
DanceDanceRevolution is already integrated into a number of
initiatives to combat childhood obesity and this partnership is
a perfect complement. The childhood obesity epidemic is
prompting schools across the country to shift the focus of
physical education. The calorie-burning DanceDanceRevolution
video game is the latest weapon in the nation's battle against
the childhood obesity epidemic and is being incorporated in
various school systems across the country as a regular part of a
physical education curriculum.
Childhood obesity and sedentary lifestyles lead to risk factors
associated with cardiovascular disease and type 2diabetes. A
2009 study published in the Journal of Pediatric Obesity,
evaluated the effects of an exercise intervention program using
DanceDanceRevolution on 35 at-risk for or currently overweight
children seven to 12 years of age. The most significant findings
from the study showed after a 12-week aerobic exercise with
DanceDanceRevolution the children who participated made
significant improvements to their overall health.
The DanceDanceRevolution franchise combines real physical
dancing with energetic music and visuals. DanceDanceRevolution
also comes with a tailored workout mode that allows players to
track how many calories they burn as they play.
About DanceDanceRevolution in Schools
As the original pioneer in the music game genre and a continued
leader in using video games as an entertaining way to promote
fitness, KONAMI first introduced the DanceDanceRevolution video
game series into public schools' curriculum in 2006 through its
groundbreaking partnership with the State of West Virginia's
Public Employees Insurance Agency (PEIA) and West Virginia
University's (WVU) Motor Development Center. Both entities were
inspired to enter into a partnership with KONAMI after West
Virginia's Games for Health research project demonstrated that
DanceDanceRevolution was an effective tool for increasing
children's activity levels and overall health while having fun!
As part of the initiative, the state developed a school-based
DanceDanceRevolution curriculum and collected data in order to
analyze and report on the health and academic benefits of using
the game in schools. With its proven success throughout West
Virginia, the program expanded to Hawaii in 2007, with an
inaugural Hawaii state tournament taking place earlier this
year. Once again, the partnership has encouraged kids to get
healthy, happy and grooving to the new beat of an active
lifestyle.