A new brief from CHOICES in partnership with Healthy Eating Research (HER), “The Cost-Effectiveness of Interventions for Reducing Obesity among Young Children through Healthy Eating, Physical Activity, and Screen Time,” was released today.
This brief provides an overview on the evidence thus far for the strategies with the lowest cost for the most health impact to prevent obesity in the places where very young children live, learn, and play.
The goals of cost-effectiveness analysis and the need for further evidence on the obesity impact of programs for very young children are also discussed in the brief.
To conduct cost-effectiveness analysis of a strategy, strong evidence for how much that strategy can reduce the risk of obesity for children, such as reducing excess weight gain and improving dietary intake and physical activity, is required. However, we need more evidence on the obesity impact of programs for young children to know whether they offer the best value for the money invested.
Based on what is currently know regarding strong evidence for impact on health, the Nutrition and Physical Activity Self-Assessment for Child Care (NAP SACC) is the best value for money spent among strategies that focus on young children in early care and education settings, but it will require upfront investment. No single strategy will solve the childhood obesity epidemic; instead, multiple interventions, across multiple settings and at many levels of influence (local, state, federal) will need to be applied together.
To learn more, read the brief.
The Cost-Effectiveness of Interventions for Reducing Obesity among Young Children through Healthy Eating, Physical Activity, and Screen Time.
Kenney E, Cradock A, Resch S, Giles C, Gortmaker S. Durham, NC: Healthy Eating Research; 2019. Available at: https://healthyeatingresearch.org/research/choices-cost-effectiveness-of-interventions-for-reducing-obesity-among-young-children