I have had the distinct honor of working with Matthew McConaughey over the past few years, and his Oscar win for “Dallas Buyers Club” is not only a crowning achievement for his acting career, but also for his relentless commitment to the betterment of health, Fox News reports. 

McConaughey’s final comment at the end of his acceptance speech for best actor last night, “Just keep livin’” was not just an elegant byline, but a mantra for his life.

As a tribute to his father, McConaughey established the Just Keep Livin Foundation (JKL) to educate and instill the importance of good nutrition and fitness to an emerging generation of children. The foundation has established a rigorous program that has been very successful in various schools across Texas and California in inspiring kids to pay more attention to their health, hence reducing the incidence of obesity.

Schools play a particularly critical role by establishing a safe and supportive environment with policies and practices that support healthy behaviors. Schools also provide opportunities for students to learn about and practice healthy eating and physical activity behaviors.

The remarkable side of McConaughey is his analytic mind that has truly imbibed the importance of data and measurable outcomes that has enables the JKL program to have such an impact, especially at the school level.

By Dr. Sreedhar Potarazu, an acclaimed ophthalmologist and entrepreneur.