Source: SourceOECD Social Issues/Migration/Health, Volume 2010, Number 11, September 2010 , pp. 134-150(17)

Publisher: OECD - Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

Abstract:

In most contemporary societies, we look to governments to protect and even increase public welfare. Whether through regulation, taxes, or education, or some combination of these, governments can play a significant part in affecting the choices we make and the outcomes that result from those choices. Governments in the OECD area have taken a broad range of actions in recent years to improve nutrition and physical activity, reacting to a growing concern about increasing obesity rates, particularly in vulnerable population groups. This chapter examines these actions and analyses the scope for, and potential consequences of, government intervention in the context of obesity prevention. It also looks at the response of the private sector to challenges related to food and physical activity in the current epidemic of obesity.

Document Type: Review article

Publication date: 2010-09-01

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