Food Policy for Public Health Practice - Assignment Example

Food Policy for Public Health Practice Introduction The growing complexity of childhood obesity and its effects is a main public health anxiety. To measure the degree of overweight and obesity in children is difficult because of variations in maturation and growth rates. Calculations for example Body Mass Index (BMI), growth charts and other measures of fat are used to ascertain whether children are overweight or obese. There has been fresh global agreement on the requirement to employ BMI, attuned for age and sex, to illustrate obesity in children. A child is looked upon as obese if his/her BMI surpasses the cut-off point for his/her age. The occurrence of overweight and obesity in general and especially in children is rising fast around the world. The increases in childhood obesity in Australia are one of the peaks amongst developed countries. Approximately 25% of Australian children are at present plump or obese which is an enormous jump from 5% in the 1960’s. Significant features causative to occurrence rates of childhood obesity in Australia comprise traditions and socio-economic condition. Childhood obesity in Australia is increasing at an annual rate of 1%, a trend which proposes that half of all young Australians will be overweight by the year 2025 (asso.org.au, 2006). In this essay the problem of child obesity in Australia is looked upon on the basis of Bacchi’s ‘what’s the problem approach’? What are the main causes of ‘problem’ child obesity and how far it is addressed? There is an elevated prevalence of overweight and obesity in children of parents of particular locale. And maternal teaching is the top social determinant of overweight and obesity in childhood. Focusing on children role and their involvement to modern society and potential populations, tackling the determinants of health and wellbeing for children and youngsters will develop population health and wellbeing in general. The main reason of the obesity pandemic is energy disproportion that is a comparative increase in energy ingestion (food intake) in concert with a decline in energy spending (reduced physical activity and increased inactive behaviour). Discovering the significant prognostic determinants of both of these behaviours, in addition to the most efficient and sustainable remedial approaches, is multifaceted and involves parental education and employment; housing atmosphere; play, leisure and physical activity; food and nutrition; and child-friendly physical and social situations. Few straightforward trends recommend moderately agreeable remedies. Childrens fruit and vegetable consumption has reduced considerably over the past 20 years. Their physical activity has as well decreased, at the same time as time spent in sedentary activities for example television watching and computer games has increased. Lastly, consumption of energy-dense foods (counting sweet soft-drinks and snack bars with a high calorie content) has greater than before (Waters, Baur, 2003). How has the child obesity ‘problem’ been framed and represented? What forces and key stakeholders have influenced and shaped policy responses? In 1997, Australia’s first policy response to the rising problem of obesity came from the National Health and Medical Research Council (NH&MRC), that reported ‘Acting on Australias weight: a strategic plan for the prevention of overweight and obesity’(Commonwealth of Australia,1997). The report alerted on encouraging physical activity and healthy diet in key settings, recognized that increased occurrence of overweight and obesity in the people was because of lifestyle and environmental factors, and chosen children and adolescents as a target group. Even with the reports potency, its suggestions were mostly overlooked at that juncture (Nathan, et.al.). In 2002, the NSW Government called for the NSW Childhood Obesity Summit, giving importance to childhood obesity on the political and public program. Even as the specific situations and drive which led the government organizing this summit have not been documented, the interaction of social factors and challenging interests at the Summit has been reported elsewhere (Nathan, et.al.). The NSW Summit recognized that childhood obesity was a rising people health problem and observed that there were several stakeholders concerned in creating the problem and, potentially, in tackling it. This Summit manifested the start of a deliberate, official and grave response to childhood obesity in NSW and Australia and was pursued by the formulation of a national strategy by the National Obesity Taskforce. It as well agreed with the progress of policies globally, for example in Europe and North America, ‘Preventing Childhood Obesity: Health in the Balance’ (Koplan, et al., 2005). What are the values or assumptions underlying this representation?  Obesity problem is growing throughout the entire population as an epidemic way, and is not restricted to particular people or susceptible groups. It can be observed how the facts and figures of the growing girth of the people as an ‘epidemic’ boomed with more trendy forms of information and outlook which echoed the views of medical and health professionals. Various Medias to a greater extent started giving attention in publishing articles concerning obesity and overweight. It is noted that over a recent 14-month period articles on overweight and obesity included nearly 50% of chronicles on food and health hazards in a leading Australian newspaper (Lupton, 2004). This mirrors improved reporting of scientific statements and progresses on the subject. However, it is as well most likely pinpointing the way in which the level of the problem of fatness as ‘epidemic’ recorded in the public’s perception as something to be worried about. Another anxiety is the recognition that though prevention of obesity is itself not easy, the successful supervision and treatment of obesity is dreadfully difficult (National Health and Medical Research Council, 2004). In terms of prediction, the chance of a solution to the obesity problem is meager (Coveney, 2008). Has the representation of the obesity ‘problem’ in children changed over time? As an answer to the 2002 Summit, childhood obesity avoidance became a NSW Government main concern, and the NSW Government initiated the ‘Prevention of Obesity in Children and Young People: NSW Government Action Plan 2003–2007 (GAP)’ (NSW Health; 2003). This plan embodied primary policy steps suggested by members at the Summit comprising of: public health and clinical specialists, industry representatives, the public representatives and politicians to deal with the social, economic, environmental and behavioural features causative to the problem of childhood obesity. Even though the representation of obesity problem in children not changed over time, the GAP recognized numerous actions that various NSW Departments agreed to put into service in order to increase their assistances to the prevention of obesity in children and young people. The important areas include: Healthy schools, an active society, helping Parents, healthy child and out-of-school care, the public perceptive, increasing the knowledge, governments and industry and the community working together. Has the policy been implemented and evaluated? How successful has it been? As with plan appraisal, strategy study preferably illustrate upon a blend of data sources and logical tools to inspect the content, execution procedure and conclusions. The use of unambiguous principle in this study, to evaluate the extent and infrastructure for obesity prevention policy, confirmed to be a suitable and positive approach to this study. The tools offered direction and power to the method of making out strengths and limitations in the content and accomplishment of GAP. But, these tools could not supply a base for evaluating the attainment of outcomes. The basic and flexible character of each of the logical frameworks as well anticipated that they did not supply a source for examination whether the applied plans really created outcomes. Even though the policy could be revealed to have met the standard entirely, this would not itself pledge the attainment of precise results (King, et al., 2007). What national policy responses (e.g. Healthy Weight 2008) have there been in Australia over the last five years? Australian Health Ministers, in the year 2002, approved that overweight and obesity are major public health problems that intimidate the health gains of Australians in the last century. They agreed that the problem needed a country-wide response, and decided to set up a National Obesity Taskforce to develop a national action plan for tackling overweight and obesity, and to organize roles and responsibilities for realizing the national plan. Healthy Weight 2008 presents a national planned framework for action to tackle the challenges of overweight and obesity in children and adolescent group and their families. A four-year time frame will shape the initial stage of a long-term strategy. These would require to be put into practice by the health region in cooperation with their colleagues in government, the private and non-government regions. Healthy Weight 2008 must be seen as an initial step towards determining Australia’s future for better fitness and wellbeing. The vital necessity is to support young people and their families both in the home and in the wider society. To approach them and to tackle the fundamental environmental and lifestyle reasons of overweight in adolescent, a cross-sectoral, multi-settings strategy is required. Besides to actions in particular situations, several vital national level actions are mandatory. These will spotlight on what can be done in practice and will spot those in charge for taking action. The private and non-government regions in addition to the broader society have a very important responsibility to do jointly with the public sector. In government there is an obvious need for action throughout a broad range of portfolios and strength of government, for instance health, education, family and the public services, surroundings, transport, sport and recreation, infrastructure and scheduling. The vital achievement issue will be how well these diverse regions can labour together (health.gov.au, 2003). Have the policy responses challenged the evidence or knowledge underpinning the ‘problem’? The basic step in attempting any health education problem or setting up any prevention agenda is to be very clear, concerning what it is they are trying to attain and to have an obvious meaning of what are they trying to stop. Concerning child obesity, there is apparent needs to be from the beginning that the responsibility as health educators and prevention experts is not in the diagnosis or treatment of child obesity. Health experts and health educators concerned in the prevention of child obesity required to know the dissimilarity linking treatment and prevention. The healing of child obesity should only happen in a medical setting after a systematic and proper clinical examination. Treatment of weight control plans, nutritional advice or other personal involvement for the obese child ought to remain the responsibility of the paediatrician, general practitioner, dietician or other clinically qualified personnel. Health experts for instance health teachers, nutritionists, nurses, youth workers, sports trainers and others working with children and youth have to know the difference between child obesity management and prevention, and should act so using proper recommendation without confusing their medical and community roles. Health and education professionals should as well be conscious of the reality that a childs health condition includes a number of factors such as physical, mental, social and spiritual health, and not simply the absence of ailment. Likewise, the absence of obesity does not necessarily ensure a healthy child. Weight management is only single feature of overall child health however it seems to be controlling the present outlook of health education and health support schemes intended at children and adolescents. Besides to defining child health within broader limitation than sheer weight status, health educators should as well be very cautious to ‘Do no harm’ to any of these vital scope of health in their efforts to care for or stop child obesity (ODea, 2005). Conclusion For future policy development addressing the child obesity, there is an urgent need for an optimistic health education strategy based on sound health education hypothesis so as to suitably plan, design, execute and assess the most suitable, relevant and efficient child obesity prevention approaches. A lot is presently identified regarding the features that inspire healthy eating and physical activity amongst children and adolescents and also, much is acknowledged in relation to the obstacles to healthy living. Ecological, environmental and holistic strategies have been effectively employed in eating disorder prevention agendas. A socio-ecologic, environmental form for escalating physical activity consequently recommends that focusing on transforming the physical surroundings, urban setting up and transportation is expected to create the most benefits in obesity prevention. Child obesity prevention is an essential modern health education topic that is not going to collapse for years to come. The intend of this standpoint is not to make available all of the answers for child obesity prevention, but rather to question present health education strategies, and to examine the possibility that some of the most well-meaning protective plan might be potentially dangerous and probable to be damaging than useful to the overweight child. Like health education professionals, all are indebted to approach the subject of child obesity prevention with an extensive outlook and a meticulous preventive focus, and hence necessitate making sure that the preventive labours ought to be confident to do no harm (ODea, 2005). References asso.org.au, (2006) Obesity in Australian Children [On line] Australasian Society for the Study of Obesity Available from: [13 September 2009] Commonwealth of Australia (1997) National Health Medical Research Council: Acting on Australias weight: a strategic plan for the prevention overweight and obesity Coveney, J. (2008). The Government of Girth, Health Sociology Review Volume 17, Issue 2, August 2008 health.gov.au, (2003). Healthy Weight 2008, Australia’s Future [On line] The National Action Agenda for Children and Young People and Their Families Available from: [13 September 2009] King, L., Turnour, C., Wise, M. (2007) Analysing NSW State Policy for Child Obesity Prevention: Strategic Policy versus Practical Action [On line] Australia and New Zealand Health Policy 2007 Available from: [13 September 2009] Koplan, J.P. Liverman, C.T., Kraak V.I, (2005) (Eds): Preventing Childhood Obesity: Health in the Balance. Washington DC: The National Academies Press. Lupton, D. (2004) A grim health future: Food risks in the Sydney press Health, Risk and Society 6:187-200. NSW Health, (2003) NSW Government: Prevention of Obesity in Children and Young People: NSW Government Action Plan 2003–2007. Nathan S.A, Develin E, Grove N, Zwi A.B (2005) An Australian childhood obesity summit: the role of data and evidence in public policy making. Australia and New Zealand Health Policy National Health and Medical Research Council (2004) Clinical Practice Guidelines for the Management of Overweight and Obesity in Adults Department of Health and Ageing: Canberra. ODea, J.A.(2005). Prevention of child obesity: ‘First, do no harm’ [On line] Health Education Research. Available from: [13 September 2009] Waters, E.B. & Baur, L.A. (2003). The Overarching Cause Is Energy Imbalance [On line] The Medical Journal of Australia Available from: [13 September 2009] Read More