title: Policies to promote healthy portion sizes for children.
abstract: People of all ages are increasingly consuming larger portions of food. Governments worldwide are involved in the regulation of many aspects of the food supply; however, policies and programs related to serving sizes for children vary or are not clearly communicated. This paper reviews U.S. federal and state government recommendations, policies, and laws related to serving size for children and suggests directions for future policy objectives and outstanding research needed to support the enactment of laws based on the best science. Specifically, this paper reviews federal dietary recommendations and requirements for nutrition programs, packaged food labels and restaurant menus; state regulation of retail environments and child care settings; food companies' self-regulatory options; and directions for future research and policy initiatives. The paper concludes that there are many opportunities for government to revise its policies and programs to better support healthy portion sizes for children and create a more transparent information environment to assist caretakers to do the same.
authors.affiliation: College of Public Health, Center for Obesity Research and Education, Temple University, Suite 175, 3223 North Broad Street, Philadelphia, PA 19140, United States. Electronic address: jennifer.pomeranz@temple.edu.
authors.forename: Jennifer L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Pomeranz
authors.affiliation: Boston University School of Social Work, Boston, MA, United States.
authors.forename: Daniel P
authors.initials: DP
authors.lastname: Miller
mesh_terms: D002648:Child; D033161:Government Regulation; D006801:Humans; D064787:Portion Size / Q000592:standards*; D064167:Recommended Dietary Allowances / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D014481:United States
keywords: Children; Government; Policy; Portion size; Public health