Halting the obesity epidemic: A public health policy approach

Traditional ways of preventing and treating overweight and obesity have alm ost invariably focused on changing the behavior of individuals, an approach that has proven woefully inadequate, as indicated by the rising rates of b oth conditions. Considering the many aspects of American culture that promo te obesity, from the proliferation of fast-food outlets to almost universal reliance on automobiles, reversing current trends will require a multiface ted public health policy approach as well as considerable funding. National leadership is needed to ensure the participation of health officials and r esearchers, educators and legislators, transportation experts and urban pla nners, and businesses and nonprofit groups in formulating a public health c ampaign with a better chance of success. The authors outline a broad range of policy recommendations and suggest that an obesity prevention campaign m ight be funded, in part, with revenues from small taxes on selected product s that provide "empty" calories-such as soft drinks-or chat reduce physical activity-such as automobiles.