Full Report (40 pgs) | Executive Summary

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Download Individual Briefs:

• Enacting 8 Policies to Prevent Childhood Obesity
• Junk Food Relative Pricing
• Junk Food Counter-Marketing
• Fruit & Vegetable Access
• Fruit & Vegetable Promotion
• Access to Physical Activity Spaces
• Physical Activity Promotion
• Physical Activity in Schools
• Physical Activity in Child Care

For more information, please contact:

Dr. Stephanie Broyles
Pennington Biomedical Research Center
Phone: (225) 763-2760
Email: prism@pbrc.edu

To view and download the full report please click here.

The Childhood Obesity Epidemic in Louisiana

• Approximately 1 in 3 Louisiana children is overweight or obese.
  
• There are serious medical, psychological, and economic costs associated with childhood obesity.
  
• In 2011, a Research Advisory Committee convened by Pennington Biomedical challenged the state to reduce childhood obesity prevalence to 23.3% by the year 2020, which means a 20% drop in current levels of childhood obesity.

The PRevention Impact Systems Model (PRISM) Committee

• In response to this challenge, a Policy Committee was convened to investigate policy opportunities to achieve the targeted reduction in childhood obesity prevalence in Louisiana.
• The Committee consisted of members from Pennington Biomedical Research Center, the Louisiana Department of Health & Hospitals, and the American Heart Association.
• The goal of the Committee was to determine the current state policies concerning childhood obesity, discuss the current policy environment in Louisiana, and use PRISM to project if and when highlighted policies could make a difference in reducing the prevalence of childhood obesity.

Modeling Change: Results from PRISM

• Louisiana’s level of childhood obesity will not decrease if the status quo regarding obesity prevention is maintained.
• Based on the projections generated by PRISM, strong policies that support healthy eating and promote active lifestyles may achieve the target of a 20% reduction in childhood obesity by the year 2020.
• The level of impact depends on the strength of the interventions and when the interventions go into effect.

Striving for a Healthier Louisiana

• Louisiana’s future – its children – depends on strategic, comprehensive, sustainable policies and an improved built environment to promote healthy lifestyles.
• Policies will require long-term commitments and economic support from individuals, communities, workplaces, schools, legislators, the media, and industry partners.