WW Launches ‘Kurbo By WW’ To Help Kids Reach A Healthy Weight

By Annie Baker ● Aug 19, 2019
  • Weight Watchers Reimagined recently announced the release of Kurbo by, which was designed to help kids and teens ages 8-17 reach a healthier weight

Weight Watchers Reimagined has recently announced the release of Kurbo by WW — which features a scientifically-proven behavior change program designed to help kids and teens ages 8-17 reach a healthier weight (derived from Stanford University’s Pediatric Weight Control Program). Kurbo by WW was built from technology acquired by WW’s purchase of Kurbo last year.

With a mobile app and virtual coaching, the program utilizes Kurbo’s evidence-based mobile platform to help children and teenagers with support from their families and helps them make lifestyle changes while receiving guidance around sustainable healthy eating, physical activity, and mindfulness habits. Kurbo by WW is available in the U.S. and the free Kurbo app can be accessed through the Apple App Store and Google Play. 

“To change the health trajectory of the world, we have a tremendous opportunity, but also a responsibility, to help kids, teens, and families,” said WW president and CEO Mindy Grossman. “With Kurbo’s proven platform, we can be a trusted and powerful partner for families, as part of our mission to inspire healthy habits for real life, for everyone.”

WW recognized the clear need for an engaging, scalable, program designed specifically for kids and teens so the company closely collaborated with its Youth and Family Advisory Board, a team of leading healthcare professionals and academic experts in pediatric health and nutrition from around the globe. After acquiring Kurbo in August 2018, WW conducted qualitative research to inform product development that would improve the user experience and make the prior Kurbo program more holistic by creating Kurbo by WW.

“According to recent reports from the World Health Organization, childhood obesity is one of the most serious public health challenges of the 21st century. This is a global public health crisis that needs to be addressed at scale,” added Joanna Strober, the co-founder of Kurbo. “As a mom whose son struggled with his weight at a young age, I can personally attest to the importance and significance of having a solution like Kurbo by WW, which is inherently designed to be simple, fun and effective.”

Kurbo by WW provides simple and science-based tools to help members with weight management and overall well-being on a platform that kids and teens are comfortable using. The unique features include:

1.) Easy-To-Use Free Mobile App With Engaging Content to Inspire Healthy Behaviors

With the free Kurbo app, kids and teens can track behaviors related to food and activity and receive responsive and personalized messaging. And the free mobile app also enables users to learn about and practice meditation like such as breathing techniques and sort through an assortment of quick recipe videos as well as engage in games that focus on healthy eating and living.

2.) Simple and Effective Program

Kurbo uses a Traffic Light System to inspire healthier eating — which is backed by 30 years of evidence-based scientific research. And the simple approach guides kids and teens toward food choices to help them learn healthy eating habits, putting food into one of three groups: red, yellow or green. From there, Kids and teens are encouraged to eat more of the healthy “green light” foods like fruits and veggies, be mindful of portions of “yellow light” foods like lean protein, whole grains, and dairy). And gradually reduce but still include consumption of “red light” foods like sugary drinks and treats.

3.) Personal Coaching With A Trained Kurbo Coach

To complement the free app features, Kurbo by WW offers subscription-based and one-on-one 15-minute virtual video sessions with Kurbo coaches who are specially-trained, Kurbo-certified, and come from a diverse range of professional backgrounds including counseling, fitness, and nutrition-related fields. And kids and teens can connect weekly with their matched coach through video chat and text for guidance on their journey and to discuss personalized goals and strategies to help them achieve long-lasting results. Plus parents receive recipes, shopping lists, and a regular newsletter full of ideas to help them create a healthy environment for the whole family.

“At WW, we have decades of expertise in scaling science-backed behavior change programs, uniquely positioning us to be a part of the solution to address the prevalent public health problem of childhood obesity,” explained Gary Foster, PhD, the Chief Scientific Officer at WW. “Alongside a distinguished group of leaders in pediatric health and nutrition, we’ve carefully developed this platform to be holistic, rewarding and inspirational so kids, teens, and families get the tools and guidance they need to manage their environment and build and sustain healthy habits.”