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Legal Political and Social Issues of Overweight and Obesity - The Global Politics Of Obesity, The U.s. War On Obesity Gains Momentum, Overweight, Obesity, And The Law
food nutrition health
The politics of obesity demand that we revisit campaign contribution laws and advocate for a government agency—independent of industry—with clear
responsibility for matters pertaining to food, nutrition, and health.
—Marion Nestle, professor and chair of the Department of Nutrition, Food Studies, and Public Health at New York University, in "The Ironic Politics of Obesity," Science, vol. 299, no. 781, February 7, 2003
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At the international level, the World Health Organization (WHO) has developed an aggressive plan to combat an escalating global epidemic of overweight and obesity—"globesity"—throughout the world. The WHO guidelines on diet and exercise, The Expert Consultation on Diet, Nutrition and the Prevention of Chronic Disease, released
in 2003, advocate such actions as lowering …
In addition to generating international debate, the issue of obesity is receiving considerable attention from lawmakers, public health officials, and politicians throughout the United States. Some legislators and policy makers have chastised the administration of President George W. Bush for allegedly yielding to the food
industry and trying to dilute the WHO antiobesity plan. Among the many legis…
In 2005 a few states considered taxing foods and beverages with minimal nutritional value and using the revenues to finance school facilities or childhood obesity prevention initiatives. A bill introduced in Nebraska would impose a sales tax on snack foods to create a fund for school facilities, and Texas would impose a
statewide sales tax on items listed as a "sweet" or "snac…
Mounting pressure on the food industry to change its marketing practices and offer healthier products has had some success. For example, in 2003 Coca-Cola withdrew from exclusive vending-machine contracts in schools, and acquired Odwalla, an organic fruit-juice company, to enable the company to offer healthy beverages. Kraft
announced intentions to eliminate in-school marketing to children, introd…
Nearly everyone who is overweight or obese has suffered some form of bias, from disapproving glances and unsolicited advice about how to lose weight to the seemingly unending stream of "fat jokes" and the unflattering and even humiliating portrayal of overweight people in the media. Despite the pervasive anti-fat bias in
American culture, until recently there were anecdotal reports, …
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