Teaching children about obesity and how to eat healthfully doesn't always have to be a drag.

Instead of the traditional food pyramid, Pittsburgh fifth-graders will learn health awareness through Chunky Hunky and Sunny Yolk, characters in a new health education program designed by Carnegie Mellon University.

"We always learn about the food pyramid in school, but it's boring so we don't remember it," said Azasha Beard, 12, of East Liberty. Azasha and her sister Elizabeth, 11, were the first adolescents to test the new program at UPMC St. Margaret Family Health Center in Lawrenceville.

Fitwits is a health education program that targets adolescents between 9 and 12 years old and teaches them how to avoid obesity and other related health complications.

The program was created as a response to the number of overweight adolescents increasing by more than 8 percent over the past decade, making it one of the leading health concerns in the United States, according to the Centers for Prevention and Disease Control.

"Obesity is a silent disease because nobody wants to talk about it," said Kristin Hughes, associate professor at the Carnegie Mellon University School of Design.

Ms. Hughes and a small team of students and kids created a series of educational tools to help teach adolescents about obesity and how to avoid it.

Caren Audenried, 20, and Jung Paek, 23, are undergraduates in the communication design program at Carnegie Mellon University and helped to make the game appropriate for children. They also work with senior Melissa Dolin, 21, of the creative and technical writing and art program.

Before the program launched, Ms. Hughes and her three students held a series of focus groups with 100 youngsters between 9 and 12 from Bloomfield and Garfield. The kids provided insight on the coolest ways to present the information.

"Medicine has needed designers for a long time to help deliver the information that we already know is important. That is the biggest dilemma," said Dr. Susan Fidler, a resident at UPMC St. Margaret Family Health Center. "This game is all encompassing and helps us deliver the information."

The program presents adolescents with two types of characters: Fitwits and Nitwits. Fitwits like Elvis Pretzley and Queen of Wheat teach kids about obesity and the importance of being active. Nitwits like Fry Girl and Biggie Allbeef show kids what to avoid and how to monitor their portions.

The characters will be introduced to fifth-graders in public schools around the city in a one-hour presentation by the end of this year. At this time, kids will learn about the characters and how they affect their diets.

Then, flash cards will be used in UPMC St. Margaret Family Health Centers to expand upon what the kids already learned in school. The cards teach kids about the appropriate Body Mass Index for boys and girls and how to eat right.

During the program's trial run, Azasha and Elizabeth were asked to define obesity and if anyone in their family was obese. After identifying that their mother was obese, Dr. Ann McGaffey of the health centers explained how the condition causes other health concerns like type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease.

The girls also learned how to measure their portions at home by using their hands. Family members should consume only one palm-size portion of meat, a fist full of vegetables and thumb tip worth of butter or dressing at each meal.

"It teaches you how to be healthy without it being really confusing. It is important to know what the right balance is for everyone," said Ms. Hughes. "Every kid who gets the talk will also get the game that the whole family can play together. It's a holistic way to talk about getting healthy."

The team created a memory game for kids to take home. In the game, family members have to answer trivia questions about staying healthy before they can take their turn.

Kids also will be given trading cards that provide background information about each of the Fitwit and Nitwit characters. The trading cards also have fun and easy snack recipes that serve as a healthy alternative to fatty fast food.

All of the components of Fitwits were funded by a $195,000 Heinz Endowments grant, but Ms. Hughes hopes to attain more sponsors to make this a national trend.

"In the future, we would like to get the support of insurance companies so that physicians can get trained to teach simple nutrition to kids," she said.