Health Public Policy Public opinion on food-related obesity prevention policy initiatives

Morley, Belinda; Martin, Jane; Niven, Philippa; Wakefield, Melanie

doi:10.1071/he12086

Cited by 58 publications

(110 citation statements)

References 20 publications

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“…the taxation questions were preceded by the question "would you be in favour or against government taking the following actions to support healthy eating?"). 9 The finding that a tax was least supported aligned with other results that show that interventions that are less intrusive, such as those that provide information, are more acceptable than those that aim to discourage behaviours through disincentives such as taxation. 18 Similar to findings of a 2013 systematic review, our study also found that, generally, women and older people were more supportive of policy interventions than other groups.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 65%

“…17 Similarly, an Australia-wide study in 2010 found higher levels of support for a 'trafficlight' style of labelling (87%) and restrictions on advertising unhealthy food to children on television (83%) than taxing unhealthy foods and using the money for health programs (62%). 9 That study reported stronger support for increasing the price of unhealthy foods to reduce the cost of healthy foods (71%) than our study, although a direct comparison cannot be made because more contextual information was provided leading up to each question in the 2010 study (e.g. the taxation questions were preceded by the question "would you be in favour or against government taking the following actions to support healthy eating?").…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 60%

“…8 Public support for food-related obesity prevention policies is strong for regulation of marketing to children and improved food labelling, but weaker for taxation policies. 9 Although measuring community support is useful to demonstrate to government the likely acceptance of policy solutions, it is also beneficial to understand what factors will increase that support. Most people recognise that there are ways they can reduce their risk of cancer, such as not smoking and protecting themselves from the sun, but maintaining a healthy weight and eating a healthy diet are not often recognised as important modifiable risk factors.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Support for food policy initiatives is associated with knowledge of obesity-related cancer risk factors

Watson¹,

Weber²,

Hughes³

et al. 2017

Public Health Res Pract

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Objectives: To investigate community support for government-led policy initiatives to positively influence the food environment, and to identify whether there is a relationship between support for food policy initiatives and awareness of the link between obesity-related lifestyle risk factors and cancer.Methods: An online survey of knowledge of cancer risk factors and attitudes to policy initiatives that influence the food environment was completed by 2474 adults from New South Wales, Australia. The proportion of participants in support of seven food policy initiatives was quantified in relation to awareness of the link between obesity, poor diet, insufficient fruit and vegetable consumption, and physical inactivity with cancer and other health conditions.Results: Overall, policies that involved taxing unhealthy foods received the least support (41.5%). Support was highest for introducing a colour-coded food labelling system (85.9%), restricting claims being made about the health benefits of foods which are, overall, unhealthy (82.6%), displaying health warning labels on unhealthy foods (78.7%) and banning unhealthy food advertising that targets children (72.6%). Participants who were aware that obesity-related lifestyle factors are related to cancer were significantly more likely to support food policy initiatives than those who were unaware. Only 17.5% of participants were aware that obesity, poor diet, insufficient fruit and vegetable consumption, and physical inactivity are linked to cancer. Conclusions:There is strong support for all policies related to food labelling and a policy banning unhealthy food advertising to children. Support for food policy initiatives that positively influence the food environment was higher among those who were aware of the link between cancer and obesity-related lifestyle factors than among those who were unaware of this link. Increasing awareness of the link between obesity-related lifestyle factors and cancer could increase community support for food policy initiatives, which, in turn, support the population to maintain a healthy weight. Key points Support for food policy initiatives is• We describe the results of an online survey of knowledge of cancer risk factors and attitudes to policy initiatives that influence the food environment • There was strong support for policies to improve food labelling (>78% of participants agreed or strongly agreed) and restrict advertising of unhealthy food to children (72%) • Awareness of the link between both overweight/obesity and lack of physical activity and cancer was low (40% and 24%, respectively) • Those who were aware of the link between cancer and obesity-related lifestyle factors were more likely to support food policy initiatives that positively influence the food environment

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 65%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 60%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Support for food policy initiatives is associated with knowledge of obesity-related cancer risk factors

Watson¹,

Weber²,

Hughes³

et al. 2017

Public Health Res Pract

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…taxation on energy-dense drinks and snacks, 63 while possibly subsidising healthier options, such as vegetables and fruit, which can prove economically prohibitive to those at the bottom of income scales 64 ii. banning advertising that aims to increase children's desire for low-nutrient, energy-dense food products [65][66][67] iii. discouraging sedentary behaviours such an excess of 'screen time' [68][69][70] and encouraging active participation in sport.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Changing eating behaviours to treat childhood obesity in the community using Mandolean: the Community Mandolean randomised controlled trial (ComMando) – a pilot study

Shield

Goodred

Powell

et al. 2014

Health Technology Assessment

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“…The majority of respondents favoured approaches such as the provision of information on healthy choices, and just over half (53 %) agreed that the government should 'not get involved in what people choose to eat'. Population-based surveys in Denmark, Germany, Australia and the USA have also shown less public support for regulation and taxation (13)(14)(15)(16) . One explanation for the low support for more intensive government intervention may be the perceived causes of overweight and obesity (17) .…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Public beliefs about the causes of obesity and attitudes towards policy initiatives in Great Britain

Beeken

Wardle

2013

Public Health Nutr.

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Objective: To assess attributions for overweight and the level of support for policy initiatives in Great Britain. Design: Cross-sectional. Respondents indicated their agreement (5-point scales: strongly disagree to strongly agree) to three potential causes of overweight (environment, genes, willpower) and five policies (free weight-loss treatment, taxing unhealthy foods, healthy lifestyle campaigns, food labelling, advertising restrictions). Setting: Data were collected as part of a computer-assisted, face-to-face Omnibus survey of adults (aged .15 years) from across Great Britain in April 2012 carried out by a market research company. Subjects: A population-representative sample of British adults (n 1986). Results: More people attributed overweight to the food environment (61 %) and lack of willpower (57 %) than to genes (45 %). Policy support was highest for healthy lifestyle campaigns (71 %) and food labelling (66 %), and lowest for taxing unhealthy foods (32 %). Food environment attributions were associated with higher support for all policies (P , 0?001). Genetic attributions were associated with higher support for free weight-loss treatments and healthy lifestyle campaigns (P , 0?001), but not other policies. Attributions to lack of willpower were not associated differentially with support for any policies (P . 0?01). Conclusions: Belief that overweight is caused by the food environment or genesboth seen as outside individual control -was associated with greater support for government policies to prevent and treat obesity. Improving awareness of the multiple causes of obesity could facilitate acceptance of policy action to reduce obesity prevalence.

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Health Public Policy Public opinion on food-related obesity prevention policy initiatives

Abstract: Overall, these findings indicate that there is strong public support for the introduction of policy initiatives aimed at creating a healthier food environment.

Cited by 58 publications

References 20 publications

Support for food policy initiatives is associated with knowledge of obesity-related cancer risk factors

Support for food policy initiatives is associated with knowledge of obesity-related cancer risk factors

Changing eating behaviours to treat childhood obesity in the community using Mandolean: the Community Mandolean randomised controlled trial (ComMando) – a pilot study

Public beliefs about the causes of obesity and attitudes towards policy initiatives in Great Britain

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