Working Together to Help Reduce Obesity
It may be no surprise to learn that American’s waistlines have been steadily expanding in recent decades – more than 35 percent of Americans are obese, and 70 percent are overweight. Twenty percent of children in the U.S. are estimated to be obese.
We’re taking the steps to involve as many stakeholders as possible to create the solution, from parents and schools to food and beverage companies, retailers, non-governmental organizations and professional sports organizations. Through our work with the Healthy Weight Commitment Foundation (HWCF), we have spearheaded the most comprehensive and serious anti-obesity effort ever developed by the food and beverage industry, and we have no plans of stopping any time soon.
In May 2010, the founding partners of the HWCF committed to reduce calories in the marketplace by providing consumers with lower-calorie options, changing recipes where possible to lower the calorie content of current products, or reducing portion sizes of existing single-serve products and investing in and supporting nutrition and physical education in schools. We’re also working with the Girl Scouts of the USA, 100 Black Men of America, the PTA and over 230 corporate and non-governmental partners who are helping to carry our message to students and families across the country.
Our goal is to get Americans to reduce calories – and our members have pledged to cut 1.5 trillion calories a year from the marketplace by 2015. We’re thrilled to announce that we have substantially surpassed the 2015 goal!
This is a complex issue — and no one is going to solve it alone. But together we can help families in America fight obesity and achieve an active, healthy lifestyle.
Susan Ralston is a senior advisor for the Healthy Weight Commitment Foundation.