ITV ‘health hub’ supports 375m Change4Life drive

change4lifeITV is launching a “health hub” to encourage viewers to lose weight and exercise more under its commitment to the Government’s £375m Change4Life anti-obesity drive.

The hub will support the forthcoming series The Feelgood Factor, which is one of the broadcaster’s flagship new season programmes. It is the first activity from ITV since committing itself to Change4Life last summer.

The three-part show begins this month with follow-up shows in February and March and will be hosted by former GMTV presenter Eamonn Holmes and Myleene Klass. Holmes and a number of other high-profile ITV faces have pledged to lose weight and change their exercise routines as part of the initiative.

A dedicated website launches today (Wednesday) and will encourage viewers to sign up to its “Pound for pound” charity campaign. It will urge dieters to get sponsored for every pound that they lose. The website will also include a calorie and nutrient calculator with access to 40,000 foods, an exercise diary and a personal challenge calculator.

The free tools will be available until four weeks after the last of three monthly episodes is shown. It is thought that the initiative will be backed by a marketing campaign around the show and website.

The first advertising under Change4Life launched earlier this year with a heavyweight campaign created by M&C Saatchi. The British Heart Foundation, Cancer Research UK and Diabetes UK are also seeking an agency for a joint anti-obesity project.

– ITV2 show American Idol will be sponsored by job site Monster.co.uk, which takes over from pizza brand Chicago Town Pizza.