HIA in the News: “Step by Step”
January 7, 2010
The Bulletin, By Markian Hawryluk
"Through the nation's early struggles to address the childhood obesity epidemic, public health experts have learned a critical lesson: Initiatives that focus solely on identifying and intervening with overweight kids aren't likely to be effective. Singling out the bigger kids, however well-intentioned, only comes across as criticism of the children and parents.
Instead, advocates hoping to address the staggering number of kids whose health is threatened by excess weight are turning to a more systemic approach: looking at the environment in which kids live, hoping to remove barriers to healthy lifestyles.
'There's growing recognition nationally that the environment is impacting the choices we make,' said Kate Wells, outreach director for the Heart Institute of the Cascades..."
