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The U.S. Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) created Spot the Block to educate children to use
the Nutrition Facts label to better manage their diets.
- The program is a part of the Department of Health and Human
Services' (HHS) commitment to help Americans live longer, better, healthier
lives by reducing overweight and obesity, poor nutrition and inactivity.
- Preventing overweight and obesity in the early years can help
young people stay healthy and can help prevent health problems in adulthood.
Since the late 1980s, adult
obesity has steadily increased to the point at which more than 65 percent of
all Americans are now overweight and over 30 percent are obese. Also, 15
percent of children and adolescents ages 6
to 19 are overweight - nearly double the rate of two decades ago.
- Overweight
and obesity increase the risk of coronary heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and
certain cancers.
- According
to some estimates, obesity results in thousands of deaths a year and accounts
for $117 billion in U.S. health care expenses annually.
FDA is working in concert with DHHS to combat the obesity problem.
- In
2004 FDA's Obesity Working Group (OWG) developed an action plan to address the
overweight and obesity problem within the scope of FDA's regulatory
authority.
- The OWG recommendations centered on the scientific fact that weight control is
primarily a function of caloric balance and therefore "calories count" when
combating overweight/obesity.
- One recommendation was that FDA establish educational strategies and
partnerships to support appropriate messages and teach people, particularly
children, how to lead healthier lives through better nutrition.
Spot the Block is one "small step" tweens (and their
parents) can take, in accordance with the Small Steps initiative from the U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services. |
