Program Areas

Mind: Social and Emotional Well-Being 

4‑H’s Healthy Living programs provide youth with a better understanding on how their choices can help themselves, their families, and their communities. These programs include alcohol, tobacco and drug use preventionbullying prevention and encouraging good decision-making skills.  Social-emotional health is cornerstone to confident, caring young leaders who understand how to take care of their minds and inner being as key to holistic well-being.

Body: Health, Nutrition, Safety & Fitness

4‑H health, nutrition, safety and fitness programs help youth understand the importance of eating right, physical fitness, and being active within a safe environment. Mastering these basic health principles places young people on the right track to developing healthy habits now as well as managing their long-term health.

Teen Mentorship & Leadership 

4‑H Healthy Living programs empower youth to be teachers in their communities by growing their leadership skills and building healthy communities. Teens as Teachers is an experiential learning model delivering research-based information (nutrition, physical activities, gardening, etc.), sharing ideas with adult partners, and applying skills and knowledge to initiate changed behaviors.

Featured Healthy Living Programs

National Youth Summit on Healthy Living

National Youth Summit on Healthy Living

The National Youth Summit on Healthy Living brings together teen leaders from across the country to develop leadership capacity in healthy living and work on solving healthy living issues impacting our homes, our community and our economy.
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4‑H Food Smart Families

4‑H Food Smart Families

Food Smart Families targets families eligible for or receiving SNAP and/or WIC benefits and teaches them how to plan, shop and prepare healthy meals on a budget. Instructors teach participants cooking skills and basic nutrition facts using a variety of commonly available foods.
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4‑H Healthy Habits

4‑H Healthy Habits

Healthy Habits supports communities across the nation to promote healthy living among youth and their families. Through this innovative and culturally-relevant program, youth are mobilized to take action around three healthy living priorities - nutrition, physical fitness, and safety – and to develop action plans that improve the health and well-being of their communities.
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4‑H Health Rocks!®

4‑H Health Rocks!®

Health Rocks!® is a series of curricula with the goal of bringing youth, families, and communities across the United States together to reduce tobacco, alcohol, and drug use by youth. Program goals include reducing youth smoking and tobacco use, helping youth build life and decision-making skills, and helping youth understand the consequences of tobacco, alcohol, and drug use.
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Featured Healthy Living Supporter

Walmart Foundation

Since 2012, 4-H and the Walmart Foundation have partnered to reach a million youth with nutrition education and physical activity, with an intentional focus on populations who face challenges in achieving positive health outcomes.

Healthy Living Research

Teens Taking the Lead on Health

From obesity to mental health, teens face many challenges that impact their health and well-being today and for years to come. 4‑H believes in the power of young people to lead positive health outcomes in their lives and communities. Check out the infographic on the state of youth health in America.
See the Infographic

Raise Your Hand

Raise your hand today to support kids in your community! Vote now and your state’s 4‑H program could win $5K, $10K or $20K to help more young people do, learn and grow.

Vote Now

4-H Saves Lives

Sisters Leia and Caroline knew something about wilderness survival, having been trained through 4‑H, and may have put those skills to use after getting lost during a walk in the woods. The brave sisters survived on the skills they learned in their California 4‑H Club.

Read the full story and help provide life skills like resilience, problem-solving and compassion to more 4‑H youth around the nation.

Read the Full Story

Shop 4-H Healthy Living Curriculum

From food science to fitness, Shop 4‑H offers a variety of healthy living curriculum.

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