Janice Lebeuf, MPH, Children and Youth Branch, NC DHHS/Division of Public Health, 1330 St. Mary's Street, Raleigh, NC 27699, 919.715.3292, janice.lebeuf@ncmail.net and Susanne Schmal, MPH, Department of Family & Consumer Sciences, NC Cooperative Extension, Campus Box 7605, Raleigh, NC 27695, 919.715.3831, schmal1innc@bellsouth.net.

Overweight and obesity have reached epidemic proportions within North Carolina. Childhood overweight is a multi-faceted, complex issue that will require addressing multiple levels of the socio-ecological framework. However, addressing overweight through policy changes has promising potential to impact the health of a large percentage of North Carolina's children. Formative research was completed with providers from WIC and CACFP under the NC Healthy Weight Initiative, an initiative to address the epidemic of childhood overweight in North Carolina. These two programs serve hundreds of thousands of children each month and provide an existing infrastructure within which policy changes will impact a large percentage of children and help to initiate healthy habits early in life. A total of 27 providers from both programs were interviewed as key informants. Most were in-state providers, but a few out-of state providers gave a regional or federal perspective. An interview guide was followed for all interviews and these interviews were recorded, transcribed and then analyzed using N-Vivo, a software program for qualitative data analysis. Many recommendations came out of this research related to nutrition education, the food package (WIC), the meal pattern (CACFP), statewide campaigns, partnerships, parent involvement and training. While childhood overweight is a daunting issue, there is promise and hope in WIC's and CACFP's potential influence in North Carolina's children to represent progress in addressing this epidemic and serve as a model state for other states to follow. Funding for this research was provided by the CDC.

Learning Objectives:

• Identify key areas for policy change within the NC WIC and CACFP programs to address childhood overweight (that are likely to translate across states).
• Gain a better understanding of qualitative research and the methodology.

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I have a significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.
Relationship: Janice was the Direcor of The NC Healthy Weight Initiative, but it has recently transitioned to the Physical Activity and Nutrition Branch.