5 thoughts on “Policy Option Brief- Childhood Obesity (Nabila I., Freddy L., & Sharita C.)”
Nabila, Freddy and Sharita,
Your policy memo demonstrates the seriousness of the problem of childhood obesity. Your options approach the problem from several angles – challenging fast food calorie content, improving access to healthy food and increasing physical exercise.
All three approaches will have impact on the problem and work together toward a solution. The fact that so much of the food available to low income families is unhealthy is a huge problem. The calorie labeling solution puts the responsibility on the consumer. Requiring restaurants to label their food or reduce the calorie counts to something healthy is huge. It is not too much to ask for food makers to make their food nutritious — nourishment is the whole point of food. I like a policy that requires the food industry to make nourishing food.
The three policy solutions are all necessary to address the problem: educating consumers and reducing calories in fast food; provide cost free meals to low-income children; and improving physical education programs in schools.
Your policy memo is well written and very interesting. The statistics that you present are alarming and definitely emphasize the importance of this issue. The correlation that you make between poverty and obesity is for me the most important. Growing up in a very poor neighborhood in the Bronx, I experienced first-hand the lack of access to healthy food versus the great availability of fast food. As a result, now as an adult I find it very hard to fix a healthy meal due to my lack of knowledge about calorie intake or preparation of a balanced meal. For that reason, I would suggest adding an educational portion to your policy of calorie reduction. In addition to a warning label, educating the public on calculating calories and teaching them how to prepare healthy meals would make it easier for a parent to make better choices.
Your policy to have three meals a day can be life changing for a struggling family. With the economic situation the country is currently undergoing, this is something that I would like to see implemented right away. I would add to this the need to make the meals healthier, the guarantee that every child across the country will have a balanced and healthy meal three times a day regardless of the location of his/her school. My fear with his implementation is that poor neighborhood schools will be underserved or underfunded and unable to perform when it is precisely this population who needs the most support.
Hey guys, this policy issue is one I am personally passionate about. I think it’s well written and I like the three factors on childhood obesity you guys are tackling. Calorie awareness, healthy food options and exercise are definitely great key elements in monitoring/solving the growing problem of childhood obesity.
I really like the idea of the Play street that you guys mentioned because growing up, that’s one thing that I was surrounded by. Most houses had backyards and all the kids usually play around and run around daily. Usually in low-income households there is a lack of backyard or space for kids to play – except for parks. However, because parents often are not free to always take kids to the park, there is very little physical activity involved in their everyday routine.
I think you may want to look at other programs/look at a policy that builds a strong partnership with the community and non-profit organizations in that community. I work for a non profit whose goal is to promote health among youths and their parents. The program offers fitness classes for both parents and the child. This way there is a culture that is being developed in the family. I know you guys are discussing child obesity. However, if there is a communal health and physical awareness culture that is developed in low-income communities it may help reduce the program on a more larger scale.
Great job on this topic and I loved reading it.
The group provide policy options which aligned with the problems presented in their Memo. For example, the group discusses the effects of fast food on children’s health, revealing that children are consuming more than the recommended amount. One of their policy recommendation challenged this notion by using aggressive direct messaging tactics on the children’s menu in fast food chain restaurants. Similarly, the group discuss correlations between poverty and obesity, suggesting that families in low income neighborhoods prefer fast food due to their economic conditions. In the second policy recommendation, the group discusses the importance of providing a third meal to children that are cared for more than 8 hours per day. In both cases, the problem presented in the Memo is address through a policy recommendation. The direct connection between the problems and policy recommendation has made the group’s paper strong and organized.
The policy memo presents interesting and well developed thoughts and policy recommendations to help the obesity problem. It is unfortunate to see outdoor activities decreasing to children’s well-being and development by academic learning. Time spent outdoors can contribute to physical fitness and appropriate weight. Outdoor activities are essential to children’s health and well being. People might think spending time outside is seen as playtime and not educative. However, getting children outside helps them improve critical thinking and challenge them intellectually. Outdoor activities enriches the curriculum and support children’s development and learning. I would suggest writing about providing only healthy foods in schools since children spend majority of their time in schools. In most schools, there are only processed foods. Research has indicated that about 80 percent of schools have contract with soda vending machines. Another option would be to tax junk food. Mostly healthy food are expensive and people opt for junk food because of convenience and cheapness. The amount of money they tax on these junk food can probably be used to bringing an awareness about obesity.
Nabila, Freddy and Sharita,
Your policy memo demonstrates the seriousness of the problem of childhood obesity. Your options approach the problem from several angles – challenging fast food calorie content, improving access to healthy food and increasing physical exercise.
All three approaches will have impact on the problem and work together toward a solution. The fact that so much of the food available to low income families is unhealthy is a huge problem. The calorie labeling solution puts the responsibility on the consumer. Requiring restaurants to label their food or reduce the calorie counts to something healthy is huge. It is not too much to ask for food makers to make their food nutritious — nourishment is the whole point of food. I like a policy that requires the food industry to make nourishing food.
The three policy solutions are all necessary to address the problem: educating consumers and reducing calories in fast food; provide cost free meals to low-income children; and improving physical education programs in schools.
Your policy memo is well written and very interesting. The statistics that you present are alarming and definitely emphasize the importance of this issue. The correlation that you make between poverty and obesity is for me the most important. Growing up in a very poor neighborhood in the Bronx, I experienced first-hand the lack of access to healthy food versus the great availability of fast food. As a result, now as an adult I find it very hard to fix a healthy meal due to my lack of knowledge about calorie intake or preparation of a balanced meal. For that reason, I would suggest adding an educational portion to your policy of calorie reduction. In addition to a warning label, educating the public on calculating calories and teaching them how to prepare healthy meals would make it easier for a parent to make better choices.
Your policy to have three meals a day can be life changing for a struggling family. With the economic situation the country is currently undergoing, this is something that I would like to see implemented right away. I would add to this the need to make the meals healthier, the guarantee that every child across the country will have a balanced and healthy meal three times a day regardless of the location of his/her school. My fear with his implementation is that poor neighborhood schools will be underserved or underfunded and unable to perform when it is precisely this population who needs the most support.
Hey guys, this policy issue is one I am personally passionate about. I think it’s well written and I like the three factors on childhood obesity you guys are tackling. Calorie awareness, healthy food options and exercise are definitely great key elements in monitoring/solving the growing problem of childhood obesity.
I really like the idea of the Play street that you guys mentioned because growing up, that’s one thing that I was surrounded by. Most houses had backyards and all the kids usually play around and run around daily. Usually in low-income households there is a lack of backyard or space for kids to play – except for parks. However, because parents often are not free to always take kids to the park, there is very little physical activity involved in their everyday routine.
I think you may want to look at other programs/look at a policy that builds a strong partnership with the community and non-profit organizations in that community. I work for a non profit whose goal is to promote health among youths and their parents. The program offers fitness classes for both parents and the child. This way there is a culture that is being developed in the family. I know you guys are discussing child obesity. However, if there is a communal health and physical awareness culture that is developed in low-income communities it may help reduce the program on a more larger scale.
Great job on this topic and I loved reading it.
The group provide policy options which aligned with the problems presented in their Memo. For example, the group discusses the effects of fast food on children’s health, revealing that children are consuming more than the recommended amount. One of their policy recommendation challenged this notion by using aggressive direct messaging tactics on the children’s menu in fast food chain restaurants. Similarly, the group discuss correlations between poverty and obesity, suggesting that families in low income neighborhoods prefer fast food due to their economic conditions. In the second policy recommendation, the group discusses the importance of providing a third meal to children that are cared for more than 8 hours per day. In both cases, the problem presented in the Memo is address through a policy recommendation. The direct connection between the problems and policy recommendation has made the group’s paper strong and organized.
The policy memo presents interesting and well developed thoughts and policy recommendations to help the obesity problem. It is unfortunate to see outdoor activities decreasing to children’s well-being and development by academic learning. Time spent outdoors can contribute to physical fitness and appropriate weight. Outdoor activities are essential to children’s health and well being. People might think spending time outside is seen as playtime and not educative. However, getting children outside helps them improve critical thinking and challenge them intellectually. Outdoor activities enriches the curriculum and support children’s development and learning. I would suggest writing about providing only healthy foods in schools since children spend majority of their time in schools. In most schools, there are only processed foods. Research has indicated that about 80 percent of schools have contract with soda vending machines. Another option would be to tax junk food. Mostly healthy food are expensive and people opt for junk food because of convenience and cheapness. The amount of money they tax on these junk food can probably be used to bringing an awareness about obesity.