An international study has concluded that government-led programs that attempt to curb childhood obesity by educating parents do not work, and the researchers are calling for policies that prioritize society-wide solutions.
Obesity is a major health crisis with more than one in eight people globally now obese, according to the World Health Organization. By 2050, nearly 60 percent of adults and one third of children are predicted to be obese.
In a bid to address the looming problem, governments have launched programs to raise awareness among new parents on the importance of a balanced diet and a healthy lifestyle.
However, according to a new study published in The Lancet medical journal, which compiled the results from 17 trials covering more than 9,000 toddlers in eight developed countries: Australia, Italy, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Sweden, such programs were not as effective as expected.
The content of the programs varied. Some involved indoor or outdoor training sessions, while others used awareness campaigns to emphasize the importance of nutrition and exercise or highlight the risks of too much screen time.
But by the time the children turned two, their body mass index was similar to those of infants whose parents had not participated in such programs.
“Our finding that the interventions were not effective is surprising and discouraging,” the international team of researchers wrote in the study.
It said that parents play a vital role, but the study highlights that they cannot be expected to reduce childhood obesity levels alone. “We need to see coordinated policies which improve affordability of healthy foods, increase access to green spaces, and regulate unhealthy food marketing to tackle childhood obesity,” said lead study author Kylie Hunter of the University of Sweden.
Malnutrition is a global issue, and obesity is a part of that problem. As governments try to confront it, there will be failures as well as successes, and it is up to those in charge to make the necessary adjustments in their quest for the desired results. In this case, the goal is to have the next generation to eat and live healthier, which generally means not being obese, if possible.
How we achieve it will depend on how parents, families, organizations, and government can work together to come up with something that works in a sustainable manner.*
