245011 School-based Obesity Prevention Policy: A Comparison of State Legislative Approaches Using the Classification of Laws Associated with School Students (C.L.A.S.S.) Systems

Monday, October 31, 2011: 8:50 AM

Jennifer Noll Folliard, RD, MPH , Center for Health Policy and Legislative Analysis, The MayaTech Corporation, Silver Spring, MD
Frank Perna , Health Promotion Research Branch, National Cancer Institute, Rockville, MD
Monica Holloway, BS , Center for Health Policy and Legislative Analysis, The MayaTech Corporation, Silver Spring, MD
April Oh, PhD, MPH , Health Promotion Research Branch, National Cancer Institute, Rockville, MD
Tanya Agurs-Collins, PhD, RD , Health Promotion Research Branch, Behavioral Research Program, Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences, National Cancer Institute, Rockville, MD
Stefanie Winston, JD, MPH , Center for Health Policy and Legislative Analysis, The MayaTech Corporation, Silver Spring, MD
Shereitte Stokes IV, PhD, MPH, MIAD , Center for Health Policy and Legislative Analysis, The MayaTech Corporation, Silver Spring, MD
     
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, childhood obesity increased in children age 2-19 from 5.0% to 16.9% between 1971 and 2008. Most researchers agree that many determinants of health, including body weight, are rooted in society-level policies and norms. Therefore, state laws and regulations are essential for addressing childhood obesity by ensuring access to healthy foods, restricting access to unhealthy foods, and creating standards for quality nutrition and physical education. This presentation will utilize new data from the National Cancer Institutes' Classification of Laws Associated with School Students (C.L.A.S.S.), which includes two scoring systems that monitor and evaluate state-level school physical education and nutrition policies, including laws and agency regulations. The results of this analysis will: compare states that have the most and the least comprehensive school physical education and nutrition policies; identify and examine states that have strengthened or weakened their school physical education and nutrition policies between 2003 and 2008; identify innovative state obesity prevention policy solutions; and provide a brief overview of sociodemographic factors associated with states profiled. Our preliminary results indicate that while many states increased the strength and comprehensiveness of laws addressing childhood obesity, others kept the status quo, and still others diminished the comprehensive body of school-based obesity prevention policies. State policies aimed at preventing childhood obesity may create a healthier generation. Understanding changes in state laws pertaining to nutrition and physical education policies will be important in assessing states' progress in improving childhood health and healthy weight.

Learning Areas:
Conduct evaluation related to programs, research, and other areas of practice
Public health or related laws, regulations, standards, or guidelines
Public health or related public policy

Learning Objectives:
At the conclusion of the presentation, participants will be able to: (1) describe various, commonly used and innovative, school-based legislative intervention points to combat childhood obesity; (2) describe the differences among states’ legislative approaches to school-based obesity prevention policy (3)define how legislation is assessed according to national criteria for school nutrition and physical education and represented in the National Cancer Institute’s Classification of Laws Associated with School Students (C.L.A.S.S.) systems; and (4) identify methods of accessing and using C.L.A.S.S. data.

Keywords: School Health, Policy/Policy Development

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am a Registered Dietitian and the manager of the Center for Health Policy and Legislative Analysis at the MayaTech Corporation. I have over 5 years of experience working in every facet of obesity prevention policy analysis and specifically have worked on the legislative analysis of this dataset for 3 years.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

See more of: Promoting School Health Through Wellness Policies & Obesity Prevention
See more of: Community Health Planning and Policy Development