Remember Michelle Obama's initiative against childhood obesity? Well, it's already doing real things.
This week the task force President Obama created released a report on how to get childhood obesity down to five percent, from 20 percent, by 2030. The report includes specific recommendations in a a wide range of areas. For example, the report suggests including better sidewalks in public housing projects so children can walk to school. Another great thing about this plan is that it has the force of many agencies behind it -- HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan and other agency heads stood with Obama in announcing the findings. The plan acknowledges that the kinds of places children live and the kinds of things they see on TV make a difference, too:
The report was lauded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Center to Prevent Childhood Obesity, which has a long history of fighting youth obesity. And CSPI, the group that once called fettucine Alfredo a 'heart attack on a plate,' found the work encouraging. 'It's not the usual kind of vague government recommendations like we should improve school foods,' said Wootan, who was one of many community advisers, along with experts from RWJF. 'It talks about increasing resources, increasing reimbursement rates, making sure there's food service equipment so schools can cook.
'It's not just the first lady saying these would be nice to do, but standing next to her are people from the departments with the resources to do something. It gives me hope that this is a national priority.'
Sure, the plan requires a lot of voluntary action from state and local governments and food and marketing companies, which is a downer as Marion Nestle notes. But its goals are still pretty realistic and exact. What's best about the plan though, and what's often heartening about the way this administration tackles these types of problems, is how integrated the effort is.
-- Monica Potts
