Nutrition Transition - Implications For Policy

Implications For Policy

Because of the nature of the dual burden of disease, most experts endorse a holistic approach to tackling the heath complications these nations will face rather than just focusing on reducing overnutrition. Public policy must be reengineered across a number of areas because of the interdisciplinary nature of this problem. These suggested areas include agriculture, manufacturing, retail, education, culture, trade, and economics. Prevention is the most cost-effective method but few successful models exist. Strategies should focus on especially at-risk populations such as women, youth, and the poor. School-based approaches and community initiatives have shown encouraging results. Government interventions that place Pigovian taxes on unhealthy foods such as soft drinks and fast food, are controversial, but could manipulate the market in a way that would encourage healthier eating. Other ways to manipulate the market include providing subsidies for healthier, unprocessed foods that would make them cheaper and more affordable for poorer populations. Political debate arises over whether obesity is an outcome of individual behavior or a consequence of an increasingly obesogenic environment. In order to reduce obesity and its subsequent health and economic consequences, policy will need to be targeted at both the individual and the environment.