title: Factors that encourage and discourage policy-making to prevent childhood obesity: Experience in the United States.
abstract: Policy-makers throughout the world seek to address childhood obesity prevention, yet little is known about factors that influence policy-makers' decisions on this topic. From September 2014 to April 2015, we conducted 43 semi-structured interviews about factors that encourage and discourage policy-makers' support for childhood obesity prevention policies. We interviewed policy-makers (n = 12) and two other groups engaged with childhood obesity prevention policies: representatives of non-governmental organizations (n = 24) and academics (n = 7). Factors that encourage policy-makers' support for childhood obesity prevention policies included: positive impact on government finances, an existing evidence base, partnerships with community-based collaborators, and consistency with policy-makers' priorities. Factors that discourage policy-makers' support included the following: perceptions about government's role, food and beverage industry opposition, and policy-makers' beliefs about personal responsibility. As public health practitioners, advocates, and others seek to advance childhood obesity prevention in the U.S. and elsewhere, the factors we identified offer insights into ways to frame proposed policies and strategies to influence policy-makers.
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Policy and Management, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA. lrutkow@jhu.edu.
authors.forename: Lainie
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Rutkow
authors.affiliation: Department of International Health (Human Nutrition), Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA.
authors.forename: Jesse
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Jones-Smith
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Policy and Management, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA.
authors.forename: Hannah J
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Walters
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Policy and Management, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA.
authors.forename: Marguerite
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: O'Hara
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Policy and Management, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA.
authors.forename: Sara N
authors.initials: SN
authors.lastname: Bleich
mesh_terms: D000288:Administrative Personnel; D002648:Child; D006291:Health Policy; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D063766:Pediatric Obesity / Q000517:prevention & control*; D011050:Policy Making; D014481:United States
keywords: childhood obesity; chronic disease; global health; policy-making; public health policy