Deakin University population health chair Boyd Swinburn yesterday called for the establishment of an independent organisation to help address the children's health crisis.
He said the body needed to be independent from government, but well-funded so it could properly research how to drum home messages about the importance of diet and exercise.
"It needs to be an organisation that is prepared to take the risks in getting some hard-hitting messages out there," Prof Swinburn said.
"To say: 'Don't drink this stuff because it rots your kid's teeth and makes them fat' - that would be a tough set of messages for a government to put out.
"They might tramp on some commercial toes."
Prof Swinburn said Quit was a good example because its campaigns were supported by government policy, but its actions were out of the hands of politicians.
He said the first Quit ads were "pretty graphic".
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Dr House has already tried this in some first season episodes. An alternative, possibly better, would be to support parents that don't know how to raise healthy children, ala Dr Phil. Might be cheaper too, but not as much fun.
Shock tactics for childhood obesity - experts
ReplyDeleteBy Rachel Hewitt
HEALTH experts have called for a TAC-style campaign to tackle childhood obesity and shock parents into action.
The Herald Sun revealed yesterday that Melbourne hospitals were being swamped by obese children, with some being treated for type 2 diabetes, a disease previously associated only with overweight adults.
Deakin University population health chair Boyd Swinburn yesterday called for the establishment of an independent organisation to help address the children's health crisis.
He said the body needed to be independent from government, but well-funded so it could properly research how to drum home messages about the importance of diet and exercise.
"It needs to be an organisation that is prepared to take the risks in getting some hard-hitting messages out there," Prof Swinburn said.
"To say: 'Don't drink this stuff because it rots your kid's teeth and makes them fat' - that would be a tough set of messages for a government to put out.
"They might tramp on some commercial toes."
Prof Swinburn said Quit was a good example because its campaigns were supported by government policy, but its actions were out of the hands of politicians.
He said the first Quit ads were "pretty graphic".
Rob Moodie, professor of global health at the University of Melbourne's Nossal Institute, supported the idea of a TAC-style campaign to start behavioural change.
But he agreed the campaign needed to be backed by government policy and programs.
"It's not a single shot that works, it has to be a decision by the government and the community together," he said. "It's a collective change."
The Herald Sun and the Royal Children's Hospital have teamed up to combat childhood obesity.
The official Kids' Food Plan will be published in the Herald Sun each Monday over the next month.
This week's plan can be accessed at www.heraldsun.com.au
The idea is the worst in terms of public policy I have heard. There are many factors which go to making an obese child. A parent has control of many of them, but not all of them. Parents already know the dangers of their child being fat. What they don't know, always, is helpful steps they can take to prevent it ala Dr Phil. Obesity is already stygmatized by all.
ReplyDeleteToo skinny for anything but granny-bashing
ReplyDeletefrom Andrew Bolt
Overflowing with empathy:
A TEENAGER who bashed a 75-year-old great-grandmother in her bed has avoided jail because a judge thought he was too skinny and “worth a chance”.
Judge David Parsons ...said Brooks, 19, was a disadvantaged young Aborigine whose chances of rehabilitation were reasonably good.
Judge Parsons said because of his youth and slight build, Brooks would not fare well in an adult prison.
Oh, I don’t know. Brooks seems quite able to handle himself with his fists:
Brooks was drunk when he broke into Mrs Durea’s flat to steal money for more alcohol, took $60 from her handbag and left her lying unconscious in a pool of blood.
She eventually managed to phone her daughter and was flown to the Royal Melbourne Hospital, where she was placed in a coma for 12 days.
The attack left Mrs Durea with a dislocated jaw, a broken nose and bruising to her face and body.