WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--In this publication, the European Union makes a selection of 33 programmes from different health areas (nutrition and healthy lifestyle, health inequalities, youth health, cancer, health treats and health information) and presents the results achieved by each of those programmes. The complete publication can be downloaded here: http://ec.europa.eu/health/programme/docs/success_stories_full_en.pdf
The European Union is actively engaged in the fight against obesity because the figures are alarming According to the European Commission, 130 million people are obese in Europe. Obesity is considered to already be responsible for 2-8% of public health costs and 10-13% of deaths within the European Region. A severely obese person is likely to die 8-10 years earlier than a person of normal weight and incurs 25% higher health expenditures than a person of normal weight in any given year. Children are not spared: one in four European school children are overweight or obese.[1]
The European Union Health Programme seeks to support Member States in their efforts to improve health, which, in turn, will contribute to delivering a smarter, inclusive and more sustainable Europe by 2020. The EPODE European Network is honoured to be selected by the European Commission The EEN 2008-2011, a Pan-European project designed to facilitate the implementation of Community Based Programmes using the EPODE methodology in other European countries, is one of three « Nutrition and Healthy Lifestyle » projects selected by the European Commission as a success story.
EEN’s objectives were to raise political, institutional and scientific awareness of the importance of local, long-term and multi-stakeholder approaches for childhood obesity prevention, to enrich existing methodologies and develop guidelines on the EPODE key pillars.
“It is important to start treating children now before the situation gets out of hand.” Jean-Michel Borys, EEN Director The EPODE Methodology: Community-Based intervention approach to prevent childhood obesity The EPODE Methodology is large-scale, effective prevention of overweight and obesity through the promotion of healthier lifestyles which relies on networks of local actors in order to reach the families in their daily life and on a long-term basis. The approach facilitates the reduction of childhood obesity by local environments, childhood settings and family norms all being strongly supportive of children enjoying healthy eating, active play and recreation. The interventions involve a town or city’s whole population (families and children) for “whole-of-community” actions targeting physical activity and nutrition.
In addition to promoting the local approach, the methodology also involves multiple stakeholders at central level (endorsement from ministries, support from health groups, NGOs, and private partners) and relies on the guidance of an independent scientific advisory board for general recommendations on content and messages. It is now implemented in more than 300 towns in 7 countries (France, Belgium, Greece, The Netherlands, South Australia, Mexico and Romania) and involves more than 20 million people. Evaluation is the key to measuring the effectiveness of Community-Based Programmes In Belgium, the Viasano CBP shows very positive results: a significant 22% reduction in the prevalence of overweight in its pilot towns between 2008 and 2010 (p< 0,04) and between these pilot towns and comparison towns of the French community. Viasano is adapted from the EPODE methodology.
[1] (http://undefined/#_ftnref1) European Commission, “Health for the European Union in 33 success stories, a selection of successful projects funded by the European Union Health Programmes”, September 2012, p. 27, http://ec.europa.eu/health/programme/docs/success_stories_full_en.pdf
The EPODE International Network (EIN) is the world’s largest obesity prevention network. It is an international non-profit organisation based in Brussels. The EIN Board of Directors is composed of experts from both scientific and policy communities, and is chaired by Dr. Armando Barriguete. The EIN also relies on a Scientific Advisory Board gathering high-level experts from key international public health institutions. The EIN and its activities are supported by two global founding partners: The Coca-Cola Company and Nestlé. For more information, please visit the website: www.epode-international-network.com and follow EIN on Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/Epode_Network.
This information was brought to you by Cision http://www.cisionwire.com