An obesity-prevention initiative chartered by the American Diabetes Association aims provide leadership and information “to help families and communities make improved nutrition and greater physical activity a priority, especially for children,” said Michael Jensen, M.D., president of the new organization called Shaping America's Health: Association for Weight Management and Obesity Prevention.
The group plans to develop clinical guidelines and best practices for health care professionals to use when working to help individuals better manage their weight, said Dr. Jensen, professor of medicine at the Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn.
The new group will incorporate the “Shaping America's Youth” program, a public-private partnership launched in 2003 in cooperation with the ADA, the Office of the Surgeon General, and other organizations.
“Science-based solutions and public-private partnerships like Shaping America's Health [the umbrella organization] are intensifying our ongoing nationwide efforts to increase disease prevention,” said Surgeon General Richard H. Carmona, M.D., in a statement.
The youth program plans to hold regional town hall meetings in the coming months, to provide grassroots input into a national action plan to combat obesity.