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Michelle Bruner knew that it was going to take some real lifestyle changes to enable her teenage daughter, Lauren, to lose weight.

It didn’t happen the first time Lauren and her family enrolled in Trim Kids, a 13-week nutrition and exercise program conducted by the YMCA Healthy Living Center in Clive.

“It took going more than once, and it took family involvement,” Michelle said. “We went through it about five different times, the last time being maybe the beginning of last year.”

Lauren, now 15, “looks awesome, and she feels good about herself,” her mother said.

The Trim Kids program, which began five years ago, is one of numerous programs under way in Iowa to address a health issue that has grown to epidemic proportions throughout the United States.

The percentage of U.S. children who are either overweight or obese is now at or above 30 percent in 30 states, according to the most recent data released last July by the Trust for America’s Health. According to that study, more than one in four Iowa children, 26.5 percent, were estimated to be either overweight or obese.

Trim Kids, developed by Dr. Janet Graebe, a pediatrician with Mercy Medical Center – Des Moines, provides a structured 13-week program, including hands-on sessions with dietitians and other specialists to teach families healthier nutrition and exercise habits.

“One of the unique things about our program is that at least one parent has to attend,” said Melissa Foley, medical programs director for the YMCA Healthy Living Center. “We really promote that everyone in the family needs to make that change to make it successful.”

To date, 460 children have completed the program, of whom 68 percent lost weight during the program, collectively shedding more than 1,000 pounds. A number of participants repeat the program several times until they see results, Foley said.

Families pay just $30 for the program, which is supported through private grant sponsors that include Walk From Obesity and the Mid-Iowa Health Foundation.

Among the topics covered are learning about the food pyramid “and how to read food labels so that they actually understand what they’re buying,” Foley said.

Behavior modification is a key aspect of the classes, she said. “It’s teaching families to decrease their children’s screen time in front of the computer and television, and the importance of sitting down as a family for meals to promote time together and eating healthy,” she said.

Typically, between 25 and 30 families will be enrolled in a session, and about that many families are on a waiting list for the next class. The summer session, which begins June 8, offers a shorter, more intensive program than during the school year.

“I really think the program encompasses spirit, mind and body,” Foley said. “It’s instilling healthy habits for a lifestyle change, and not just a quick fix.”

Lauren said learning to eat smaller portions was one of the most valuable lessons she learned from the classes. And now everyone in the family is eating healthier as well, her mother said.

“Instead of McDonald’s, we fix something at home, maybe chicken breast with a vegetable,” Michelle said. The nutrition classes also encourages kids to try fruits and vegetables they might not have eaten before.

Lauren “was very close-minded to trying (new foods) before,” Michelle said. “Now she will try new things.” She’s also being more active and taking walks with her friends, Michelle said.

Another family said they have seen significant changes by participating in Trim Kids last fall.

“It’s just very positive and uplifting,” said Beth Day, whose 10-year-old son, Hayden, lost three inches from his waist and nine pounds from the changes the family made. Her husband, Kevin, lost 25 pounds. “It just made such a huge difference for us,” she said.

Part of the course requires each participant to record everything he or she eats in a journal, “which really makes everybody accountable,” Beth said. “You see everything you put into your mouth.” And the course taught the correct portion sizes of foods, which was eye-opening, she said.

“They showed us amounts kids should be eating, and you realize how much more we are eating than we should as a society,” she said.

Having some outside influence also helps a great deal, Lauren’s mother said.

“I can tell her something until I’m blue in the face, but having someone else tell them the same thing I think has a greater impact for kids,” she said.