Abstract
The United States and other industrialized countries are experiencing an obesity epidemic, with approximately one third of youth and two thirds of adults defined as overweight or obese. Despite efforts to reverse this health crisis, there are few signs of recovery. In this comprehensive report, the Institute of Medicine Committee on Accelerating Progress in Obesity Prevention sets forth a series of recommendations to help guide the scope of these efforts over the next 10 years.
The report is a powerful call to action for policy makers, health care professionals, community organizers, educators, as well as individual families. The authors outline 5 key targets in their efforts to reverse the obesity epidemic, with an emphasis on their combined impact. These include incorporating physical activity as part of everyday life, making healthy food and beverage options the easy choices, creating effective messages related to physical activity and nutrition, expanding the role of health care agencies in obesity prevention, and focusing on schools as a key target for obesity prevention efforts. Each of the 5 recommendations is connected to multiple strategies, actions, and benchmarks for evaluating progress. The book is well organized, concepts are grounded in science and clearly presented, and there are multiple illustrative examples, making it accessible to a broad readership.
Noteworthy is the Committee’s willingness to address a number of controversial topics including the use of excise taxes on unhealthy foods and the role of personal freedom versus a society’s obligation to protect the health of its citizens in guiding food choices. This is not a book for clinicians looking for step-by-step guidance regarding how to work with patients. However, the book provides inspiration regarding how the United States can restructure key elements of the environment to tip the scales in favor of reversing the obesity epidemic.