SANTA BARBARA, Calif., Aug. 6, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- A silent crisis is growing in America's classrooms: rising rates of preventable chronic illness, mental health challenges, and health illiteracy are threatening the well-being of an entire generation. Know Yourself Academy is here to help.

According to the CDC, 1 in 5 adolescents in the U.S. have prediabetes, and 40% report persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness. At the same time, over 4.4 million children in the U.S. lack access to health insurance, cutting them off from early interventions and basic care.

But there's hope, and it starts with education.

Know Yourself Academy, an innovative digital platform for elementary and middle school students, is reframing health education as preventive medicine. Its engaging, hands-on curriculum empowers kids to understand their bodies and make informed choices about nutrition, movement, mental wellness, and more. Know Yourself Academy gives kids the tools they need long before bad habits become lifelong health issues.

"We believe health literacy is the missing comprehensive subject in elementary education," says Nancy Howes, Founder of Know Yourself Academy. "If children don't understand how their bodies work, they can't protect their physical or emotional health. That's something we can change. I'm advocating for a generation that is not just well informed, but one that is truly well."

Know Yourself Academy lays the foundation for lifelong healthy habits by teaching anatomy and wellness in a way that sticks. Through storytelling, challenges, and guided lessons, students learn what their body systems do, how they support the rest of the body, and how their choices (like screen posture, hydration, or activity levels) impact the health of their only lifelong possession, their bodies.

It's education that does more than inform. It equips kids with skills they need for life.

"Imagine if health knowledge was treated like reading or math," says Howes. "We'd raise a generation of healthier kids who can prevent the conditions that are overwhelming our healthcare system. We should not wait until they're sick to start teaching them how to be well."

Know Yourself Academy is on a mission to make health literacy part of every child's core education. Because when kids understand their bodies, they can take care of them.

About Know Yourself Academy
Know Yourself Academy is a digital education platform dedicated to making health literacy engaging, accessible, and foundational for kids. Created by the team behind the award-winning Know Yourself print books, Know Yourself Academy teaches anatomy, movement, and wellness in ways that stick - through storytelling, activities, and interactive content. Learn more at KnowYourself.com.

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SOURCE Know Yourself