Childhood obesity prevention through advocacy and legislative change

Children's Defense Fund

Approach statement: Fictional children's advocacy group

Fictional children's advocacy group

The purpose of our childhood advocacy group is to raise awareness about poor and low-income children who are suffering from obesity and the physical and psychological risks associated with obesity. The group will focus both on proactive strategies, as well as advocate for more regulation, in support of legal initiatives that will reduce children's calorie intake and improve the types of food that they eat at school. Proactive strategies will include more nutrition education, increased access to parks and recreational facilities, and expanded physical education programs. Legislative actions include prohibiting the use of fast food and sugary foods in schools, including in cafeterias, vending machines, and as part of promotional agreements between school activity groups and companies that promote unhealthy foods. According to a recent study in the American Journal of Public Health, even when controlled for income, children who attend schools within a half-mile of fast food restaurants are more likely to be obese. Lobbying federal, state, and local legislatures (as well as school boards) to limit children's exposure to an obesegenic environment at school will be a core component of the group's activities.

Fundraising will also be a critical aspect of our group. Programs such as Alice Waters' Edible Schoolyard -- a school garden in a low-income area designed to help feed the student body through its bounty, as well as teach students about healthy nutrition and a non-corporate food culture through gardening -- will be financially supported by the organization. Working with local organizations will be a core component of the group, as we believe that every child is an individual and that an individualized approach to obesity-reduction is often the most effective one. Students in rural areas, for example, may lack transportation to supermarkets at home, and rely upon unhealthy, mass-produced food as a result. Children in urban areas may lack support for physical education, because of the absence of safe places to play in their environments. While the contributing factors to obesity may be the same -- too many calories and not enough physical activity -- the reasons that an activity and caloric balance occurs must be addressed locally, and not in a generic fashion.

Donor recognition

First Lady Michelle Obama has made reducing childhood obesity in low-income areas a critical aspect of her tenure as First Lady, as has billionaire businessman Michael Bloomberg during his tenure as New York City mayor (Hellmich 2010). Seeking donations from prominent public donors sympathetically affiliated with its cause will have a dual purpose of raising awareness of the organization's profile as well as raising funds.