Background of the issue of obesity and overweight Nearly two-third of adults and one-three …show more content…
Currently, only 10 states mandate BMI reporting, while five states have a policy in place recommending BMI reporting (Bhattacharya, 2013). Although BMI reporting is not a pressing issue, reporting should fall exclusively within the state’s police power. Another governmental policy that is currently in place is the mandatory labeling of foods with nutritional facts to promote awareness on calories intake (Bhattacharya, 2013). In 2011, the Illinois General Assembly proposed a bill that places taxes on sugary beverages to help scrub the prevalence obesity and generate revenue for health promotion services (Bhattacharya, 2013). In June 2016, the City of Philadelphia enacted a $0.15 cent per ounce supplier tax on sugary drinks. Assets from the tax levy on sugary beverages will go to primary education, public schools health educational programs, and the city of Philadelphia obesity prevention educational …show more content…
Moreno et al. (2013) provided information on obesity and overweight epidemic among elementary school students and examined factors that predict obesity and overweight issues among students. Understanding the variables that may affect children with overweight and obesity may help in the formation of health policies to scrub the prevalence of obesity in the school systems in the United States. The epidemic of overweight and obesity are linked with an increasing burden of diabetes, CVD, high blood pressure, and other health-related conditions (Jia et al., 2016).
Merits and limitations in identifying the social determinants The study by Moreno et al. (2013) was limited because the BMI data was representative of only one school district. The BMI data did not include any information on the students’ parents BMI and other social determinants of health like access to healthy and affordable foods, built environment, and availability of resources to meet daily needs that may impact the students’ BMI (Moreno et al., 2013). The examination of the prevalence of BMI across schools remains significant for formulating health policies across school districts.
Current intervention to address obesity and