Childhood Obesity in the United States

Childhood Obesity in the United States: Legislators and Facilitators examines barriers to childhood obesity legislation and public policy in the U.S., with a focus on competing value priorities and how they can create conflict in the legislative process. Childhood obesity advocates need to incorporate value narratives and conflicting value priorities into their research and future childhood obesity proposals. Value priorities are an essential, often overlooked, element in the legislative decision-making process, whether for their intrinsic value or for some tangible benefit such as reelection or appeasing special interests. However, childhood obesity is not the only public issue legislators aim to address, and other external policy actors play a part in what is a priority on the agenda.
John Charles Volpe argues that childhood obesity and the legislative process are too complex to overcome current barriers to childhood obesity legislation and policy anytime soon. A significant shift in cultural and behavioral norms is necessary in the U.S., but achieving this will be challenging without adequate governmental support. Advocacy efforts should shift focus onto industry practices such as marketing and campaign contributions, a modified educational system, mandating minimums, emphasizing measurement and evaluation, and incorporating game playing into the physical education curriculum.

John Charles Volpe is the Chief Operating Officer of Excalibur Insurance Management Services LLC, the Attorney-in-Fact (AIF) for the Housing and Redevelopment Insurance Exchange (HARIE), a nonprofit, reciprocal property and casualty insurance carrier. John is also an adjunct faculty member of the Health Administration and Human Resources Department at the University of Scranton, teaching a public health course.

Introduction
Part I: Prevalence, Etiology, Health Effects, Economic Costs
Chapter 1: Prevalence
Chapter 2: Etiology
Genetics
Environmental Factors
Media, Marketing, and Advertising
Behavioral Factors
Psychological Factors
Chapter 3: Health and Economic Effects
Part II: Legislative Barriers and Facilitators to Childhood Obesity Legislation
Chapter 4: Barriers and Facilitators to Childhood Obesity Legislation: Objective and Subjective Overlap
External Barriers and Facilitators to Childhood Obesity Legislation
Internal Barriers Or Facilitators to Childhood Obesity Legislation
Part III: Common Value Priorities and Ideologies That Create Conflict
Chapter 5: Individual Values and Political Ideology Applied to Childhood Obesity
Individual Values
Civil Liberties & Rights
Political Ideological Conflict
Value Trade-Offs
Part IV: The Industry Issue and Tobacco Similarities
Chapter 6: The Industry Issue
Banned Food Additives and Other Harmful Ingredients
Dietary Guidelines For Americans and Industry
Hypothetical Case Example
General Lobbying Efforts
Tobacco Industry Similarities
Part V: Effectiveness Of Current Federal and State Legislation, Policies, and Programs
Chapter 7: Federal and State Policies and Programs
Federal Legislation, Policies, and Programs
State Legislation, Policies, and Programs
Part VI: Recommendations and Concluding Remarks
Chapter 8: Overcoming Legislative Barriers
U.S. States Policy Tables: Tfah 2024
Limitations Of Current Government Policies and Programs
Chapter 9: Recommendations
Recommendation I: Public Advocacy and Targeting Industry
John F. Kennedy's Vision
Recommendation Ii: Modify The Educational System
Recommendation Iii: Evaluation and Enforcement
Recommendation Iv: Incorporate Gamification Into Physical Education
Conclusion