Note to Parents
Information about SparkTeens.com
-- By SparkTeens Staff
As a parent or guardian, we are sure you feel concerned about what your child will be doing online, and we are too. SparkTeens.com was created as a resource for 13- to 17-year-olds. We try to offer age-appropriate information and resources about health, nutrition, fitness and weight management, and a positive community where teens can connect with and support one another as they reach their goals. However, not every teen is ready to deal with these issues at the same age. If your teen is younger than 13 or you think he or she is not ready to interact online with older teenagers (at whatever age) you should direct him or her to a website other than SparkTeens.com.SparkTeens is the newest addition to the SparkPeople family of websites, which also includes the award-winning SparkPeople.com and BabyFit.com. SparkPeople's mission is to help millions of people get healthy and reach their goals by providing resources and tools completely free of charge. While our other websites enforce a strict age policy (for adults 18 and over), we realize that teens today need (and want) information about health and fitness—that's where SparkTeens comes in.
SparkTeens offers many of the same innovative tools as its parent site, SparkPeople.com. However, the tools and content found here have been adapted and modified so that they meet the needs and interests of teenagers. Whether your child wants to become more active, learn to make healthy food choices or improve his or her fitness level, SparkTeens' tools and support are here to help people succeed.
There are countless things your teen can do on this site to reach his or her health, fitness and nutrition goals, including:
- Use our Nutrition Calculator to learn about proper nutrition for growth and development
- Follow a workout program, complete with detailed exercise demos and videos
- Explore articles and quizzes on nutrition, fitness, health and goal-setting
- Interact in a positive community of other like-minded teens
- Get encouragement and support from SparkTeens members and experts
- Learn about reaching a healthy weight by making good food choices and exercising moderately.
- Much, much more!
The Website seeks to comply with The Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), which restricts the personal information we can collect from individuals under the age of 13. Individuals who are under the age of 13 are prohibited from using the website. It is important for parents to understand the laws that regulate children's activity on the Internet, and we recommend that you read more about COPPA and related privacy issues. Useful information regarding children and online privacy can be found here: www.ftc.gov/kidzprivacy. Please also review our Privacy Policy for additional information about the type of information we collect on the website. If you believe that we might have any information from or about a child under the age of 13, please contact us as support@sparkteens.com.
Additionally, we offer certain safety features, such as:
- Private profiles. By default, only friends can view your child's profile.
- Private Teams. Members of private groups can only share information with group members, which no one else can view.
- Safety reminders. We discourage your child from sharing email addresses, phone numbers or other identifiable information.
- "Report" functionality. If someone posts an inappropriate comment, photo, or post, members can flag it so our staff can handle and remove it in a timely manner.
- Expert advice. Our articles are written and reviewed by nutrition, fitness and health experts for safety and accuracy.
- Make sure he or she never gives out personal information on the Internet. Teens shouldn't post anything they wouldn't want the world to know (e.g. phone number, address, IM screen name or specific whereabouts). Tell your teen he or she should avoid posting anything that would make it easy for a stranger to find him or her, such as local hangouts.
- Make sure he or she doesn't mislead people into thinking that he or she is older or younger. If we are made aware that he or she is under 13, we will delete his or her profile.
We value the thoughts, opinions and suggestions of parents and encourage you to contact us if you have any questions or concerns. We hope that your child can have fun while using SparkTeens to build healthy habits and connect with other teens. If you would like to join the adventure, we invite your to join us at SparkPeople.com.
To Your Teen's Health!
The SparkTeens Staff
