Obesity Prevention Summit:Policy Solutions for a Healthier

Washington

Hugh EwartSeattle Children’s Hospital

November 15, 2011

Overview

Seattle Children’s Institutional Snapshot• Cafeteria and Vending Philosophy and Changes• Beverages

SSB Consumption: Role of Individual• Impact possible• Sustainable only in concert with other supports

SSB Policy Change by Government: Politics• Power of the T word in a recession• Powerful interest groups

Seattle Children’s Institutional Snapshot

• 250 bed pediatric referral center• Serving largest landmass of any free-standing

children’s hospital in US (Washington, Alaska, Montana and Idaho)

• Over 2/3 of patients have multiple chronic conditions

• 1/3 of patients are overweight or obese. 40% in our Odessa Brown Children’s Clinic

• Breadth of obesity research

Seattle Children’s Institutional Snapshot

• Increased healthy food and beverage options in cafeteria and food vending machines

• Soda not on patient menus• Soda Free Sundays

• New vendor will allow significant increase in healthy vending machine beverage options in coming months

SSB Consumption: Role of Individual

• Beverage consumption a modifiable behavior change• Changing food consumption behavior much more

complicated• Food=indisputable human need• Soda=unnecessary for human survival• External supports imperative to sustain behavior change

SSB Policy Change by Government: Politics

• Taxes hard during economic downturns

• Philadelphia SSB tax • $10M obesity research grant

offered by soda industry• Tax effort halted

• Modest Washington State soda tax • American Beverage Association

spends $17M to overturn legislative-approved ‘grocery tax’

Questions?