Evaluating progress of obesity prevention: What should the u.s. be doing?

The many initiatives that have targeted obesity prevention monitoring and evaluation within and across sectors and levels from national to community are incomplete and have yet to be harmonized. Without coordinated evaluation, progress will be uneven and unnoticed and the opportunity either to correct the efforts toward obesity control, or to build on relative successes, will be missed. Currently the U.S. does not have a nationwide evaluation plan for obesity prevention. This panel discussion will fill this gap by describing the 2013 recommendations from the Committee on Evaluating Progress of Obesity Prevention Efforts for a National Evaluation Plan. Included will be a description of: 1) a brief overview of current international efforts for evaluating obesity prevention efforts; 2) how integrated, multi-level evaluation plans fit within the proposed Evaluating Progress of Obesity Prevention framework; 3) recommendations for national action in a systems context that include multiple environments and sectors; and 4) elements of the plan that address disparities in both obesity prevalence and in obesity prevention efforts.