The Hawaii Initiative for Childhood Obesity Research and Education (HICORE) provides collaborative and multi-disciplinary leadership in research and education on childhood obesity, physical activity and nutrition in Hawaii. The Initiative is based at the University of Hawaii John A. Burns School of Medicine, Department of Pediatrics and is the collaborative effort of academic and community partners in Hawaii.

Hawaiʻi Initiative for Childhood Obesity
Research and Education Mission

The mission of HICORE is to provide collaborative and multi-disciplinary leadership in research and education targeting childhood and adolescent obesity in Hawaiʻi in order to improve the health and wellness of Hawaii’s families now and for future generations.

Core Values of HICORE:

• Family and Community-Centered: We recognize the central importance of Hawaii’s families and communities in Hawaiʻi.
• Health and Wellness: We support research and education that recognize the value of health, wellness and the prevention of disease and, to this end, the importance of holistic approaches that recognize the interplay between biological, psychological, social, and environmental factors in the maintenance of health.
• Integrity: We are committed to the principles of truth, social equity, responsibility and transparency in the scholarly pursuit of research and education

HICORE recognizes the following:

• Childhood obesity is a disease and one of the most significant precursors to the development of a multitude of chronic diseases including diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancer and depression. In Hawaiʻi, these chronic diseases disproportionately affect Native Hawaiian, immigrant, and low-income communities.
• The risk factors related to childhood obesity and subsequent metabolic changes begin at pre-conception and continue throughout the life of the individual.
• Childhood obesity is an exceptionally complex health problem caused by a multitude of micro-level and macro-level factors, including genetics, the individual, the family, the community and society as a whole. Childhood obesity can no longer be seen as an individual’s fault and responsibility. As such, obesity cannot be prevented and treated at only the individual level; addressing the problem of childhood obesity will require innovative, multi-level, multi-disciplinary approaches.
• Hawaii's unique multi-cultural, ethnic, geographical, and economic character create both challenges and opportunities to address childhood and adolescent obesity and the prevention of chronic diseases related to obesity.

Target issue: Childhood Obesity.

Target population: Children, adolescents, and their families, in Hawaiʻi and the Pacific Basin.