Abstract
Despite 2 decades of effort by the public health community to combat obesity, obesity rates in the United States continue to rise. This lack of progress raises fundamental questions about the adequacy of our current approaches. Although the causes of population-wide obesity are multifactorial, attention to food systems as potential drivers of obesity has been prominent. However, the relationships between broader food systems and obesity are not always well understood. Our efforts to address obesity can be advanced and improved by the use of systems approaches that consider outcomes of the interconnected global food system, including undernutrition, climate change, the environmental sustainability of agriculture, and other social and economic concerns. By implementing innovative local and state programs, taking new approaches to overcome political obstacles to effect policy, and reconceptualizing research needs, we can improve obesity prevention efforts that target the food systems, maximize positive outcomes, and minimize adverse consequences. We recommend strengthening innovative local policies and programs, particularly those that involve community members in identifying problems and potential solutions and that embrace a broad set of goals beyond making eating patterns healthier. We also recommend undertaking interdisciplinary research projects that go beyond testing targeted interventions in specific populations and aim to build an understanding of the broader social, political, and economic context.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 44S-53S |
| Journal | Public health reports (Washington, D.C. : 1974) |
| Volume | 133 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Nov 1 2018 |
Fingerprint
Keywords
- food systems
- healthy eating
- obesity
- systems approaches
- systems science
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health
Cite this
Grappling With Complex Food Systems to Reduce Obesity : A US Public Health Challenge. / Barnhill, Anne; Palmer, Anne M; Weston, Christine; Brownell, Kelly D.; Clancy, Kate; Economos, Christina D.; Gittelsohn, Joel; Hammond, Ross A.; Kumanyika, Shiriki; Bennett, Wendy.
In: Public health reports (Washington, D.C. : 1974), Vol. 133, No. 1, 01.11.2018, p. 44S-53S.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Grappling With Complex Food Systems to Reduce Obesity
T2 - A US Public Health Challenge
AU - Barnhill, Anne
AU - Palmer, Anne M
AU - Weston, Christine
AU - Brownell, Kelly D.
AU - Clancy, Kate
AU - Economos, Christina D.
AU - Gittelsohn, Joel
AU - Hammond, Ross A.
AU - Kumanyika, Shiriki
AU - Bennett, Wendy
PY - 2018/11/1
Y1 - 2018/11/1
N2 - Despite 2 decades of effort by the public health community to combat obesity, obesity rates in the United States continue to rise. This lack of progress raises fundamental questions about the adequacy of our current approaches. Although the causes of population-wide obesity are multifactorial, attention to food systems as potential drivers of obesity has been prominent. However, the relationships between broader food systems and obesity are not always well understood. Our efforts to address obesity can be advanced and improved by the use of systems approaches that consider outcomes of the interconnected global food system, including undernutrition, climate change, the environmental sustainability of agriculture, and other social and economic concerns. By implementing innovative local and state programs, taking new approaches to overcome political obstacles to effect policy, and reconceptualizing research needs, we can improve obesity prevention efforts that target the food systems, maximize positive outcomes, and minimize adverse consequences. We recommend strengthening innovative local policies and programs, particularly those that involve community members in identifying problems and potential solutions and that embrace a broad set of goals beyond making eating patterns healthier. We also recommend undertaking interdisciplinary research projects that go beyond testing targeted interventions in specific populations and aim to build an understanding of the broader social, political, and economic context.
AB - Despite 2 decades of effort by the public health community to combat obesity, obesity rates in the United States continue to rise. This lack of progress raises fundamental questions about the adequacy of our current approaches. Although the causes of population-wide obesity are multifactorial, attention to food systems as potential drivers of obesity has been prominent. However, the relationships between broader food systems and obesity are not always well understood. Our efforts to address obesity can be advanced and improved by the use of systems approaches that consider outcomes of the interconnected global food system, including undernutrition, climate change, the environmental sustainability of agriculture, and other social and economic concerns. By implementing innovative local and state programs, taking new approaches to overcome political obstacles to effect policy, and reconceptualizing research needs, we can improve obesity prevention efforts that target the food systems, maximize positive outcomes, and minimize adverse consequences. We recommend strengthening innovative local policies and programs, particularly those that involve community members in identifying problems and potential solutions and that embrace a broad set of goals beyond making eating patterns healthier. We also recommend undertaking interdisciplinary research projects that go beyond testing targeted interventions in specific populations and aim to build an understanding of the broader social, political, and economic context.
KW - food systems
KW - healthy eating
KW - obesity
KW - systems approaches
KW - systems science
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85056536685&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85056536685&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1177/0033354918802793
DO - 10.1177/0033354918802793
M3 - Article
C2 - 30426872
AN - SCOPUS:85056536685
VL - 133
SP - 44S-53S
JO - Public Health Reports
JF - Public Health Reports
SN - 0033-3549
IS - 1
ER -