Action for Children works to encourage healthy behaviors (like physical activity and healthy eating) among children and youth while discouraging negative, unhealthy behaviors such as sexual activity and substance use. While Action for Children promotes improved health behaviors of all children, our primary focus is on adolescent health behaviors. 

During adolescence, teenagers establish patterns of behavior and make lifestyle choices that affect their current and future health. Behaviors such as reckless driving, violence, substance use and sexual behavior can have serious immediate and long-term consequences. Research shows that the actions of parents, educators and policymakers can influence adolescents’ knowledge, attitudes and behaviors. Action for Children works to ensure that North Carolinians are well-informed about the types of risk behaviors teens engage in, the consequences of such behaviors and what they can do to help ensure that more adolescents make smart choices about their health. Action for Children has also worked on increasing children’s access to healthy foods at school, and reducing youth violence and unintentional injuries and deaths.