Weight Watchers recently announced in a press release on Feb. 8 [1] that it's planning on rolling out a program specifically targeted at teenagers by 2020.

Mindy Grossman, the President and CEO of Weight Watchers, said in a statement that Weight Watchers wants to start the conversation about maintaining a healthy weight earlier by "helping the development of healthy habits at a critical life stage" and offering free Summer memberships to teens between 13 and 17 years old.

Weight Watchers told Today why it thinks the program could actually be beneficial to teenagers who struggle with their weight:

Our goal is to help those who need healthy habits to develop them at this critical life-stage [2]; this is not about dieting. For a six-week period this Summer, teens will be able to join Weight Watchers for free and can continue their membership through age 17. They will be required to go to one of our meeting locations for their parent/guardian to provide consent, as we know a family-based approach is critical at this age. We have and will continue to talk with healthcare professionals about specific criteria and guidelines as we get ready to launch this program. We think there's a real opportunity to make an impact on a problem that is not currently being addressed effectively.

So far, no details have been released about whether the program will be tailored to the specific needs of teens or whether it will be a variation of the traditional point system adults have been following for years.