Topic: Nutrition

Early Childhood Obesity Prevention Policies

Even the youngest children in the United States are at risk of becoming obese. In response, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) reviewed factors related to overweight and obesity from birth to age five and develop this report which recommends actions that healthcare professionals, caregivers, and policymakers can take to prevent obesity in young children.

Nutrition and health in women, children, and adolescent girls

Published alongside the UN Secretary General’s second Global Strategy for Women’s, Children’s and Adolescents’ Health, this policy brief makes the case for strengthened focus on nutrition, with special attention to the first 1,000 days (from a woman’s pregnancy to the child’s second birthday), pregnant and lactating women, women of reproductive age, and adolescent girls. According to the authors, urgent action is needed to tackle malnutrition in all its forms and to help nutrition unlock the potential of investment in the health of women, children and adolescents.

The 2013 Lancet Series on Maternal and Child Nutrition

In a follow up to its 2008 series, The Lancet’s 2013 series on maternal and child nutrition revealed that improvements in nutrition remain “a massive unfinished agenda.” Perhaps the most startling new finding was the revelation that malnutrition is responsible for nearly half of all child deaths each year—3 million children under age 5—and is the single greatest threat to child survival. The evidence within The Lancet reinforced the case for improving nutrition in the first 1,000 days, highlighting 10 proven nutrition interventions could save almost 1 million lives and reduce the number of stunted children by 33 million.

The 2008 Lancet Series on Maternal and Child Undernutrition

In 2008, the British Medical journal The Lancet published a landmark series of papers which led to a seismic shift in how the world addresses maternal and child malnutrition. The 2008 Lancet Series provided the foundation of scientific evidence upon with 1,000 Days was created.

Childhood Overweight Infographic

In collaboration with WHO, 1,000 Days developed this infographic—one in a series of six—to highlight actions needed to achieve the global target on childhood overweight.

Childhood Overweight Policy Brief

The World Health Organization (WHO), in collaboration with 1,000 Days, developed a series of six policy briefs linked to each of the global nutrition targets. These policy briefs provide essential guidance to policymakers regarding actions needed in order to achieve progress toward improving maternal and child nutrition and achieving the global nutrition targets by 2025.

There has been a dramatic rise in the numbers of children under 5 years of age who are overweight. Between 2000 and 2013, the number of overweight children worldwide increased from 32 million to 42 million and it is now estimated that the number of children under 5 years of age who are overweight will increase to 70 million.

WHO Global Nutrition Targets Policy Brief

Recognizing that accelerated global action is needed to address the pervasive and corrosive problem of the double burden of malnutrition, in 2012 the World Health Assembly Resolution 65.6 endorsed a Comprehensive implementation plan on maternal, infant and young child nutrition, which specified a set of six global nutrition targets.