@article {570506,
	title = {Three Interventions That Reduce Childhood Obesity Are Projected To Save More Than They Cost To Implement},
	journal = {Health Aff (Millwood)},
	volume = {34},
	number = {11},
	year = {2015},
	month = {2015 Nov},
	pages = {1932-9},
	abstract = {Policy makers seeking to reduce childhood obesity must prioritize investment in treatment and primary prevention. We estimated the cost-effectiveness of seven interventions high on the obesity policy agenda: a sugar-sweetened beverage excise tax; elimination of the tax subsidy for advertising unhealthy food to children; restaurant menu calorie labeling; nutrition standards for school meals; nutrition standards for all other food and beverages sold in schools; improved early care and education; and increased access to adolescent bariatric surgery. We used systematic reviews and a microsimulation model of national implementation of the interventions over the period 2015-25 to estimate their impact on obesity prevalence and their cost-effectiveness for reducing the body mass index of individuals. In our model, three of the seven interventions--excise tax, elimination of the tax deduction, and nutrition standards for food and beverages sold in schools outside of meals--saved more in health care costs than they cost to implement. Each of the three interventions prevented 129,000-576,000 cases of childhood obesity in 2025. Adolescent bariatric surgery had a negligible impact on obesity prevalence. Our results highlight the importance of primary prevention for policy makers aiming to reduce childhood obesity.},
	keywords = {Adolescent, Child, Cost-Benefit Analysis, Health Promotion, Humans, Pediatric Obesity, Policy Making, United States},
	issn = {1544-5208},
	doi = {10.1377/hlthaff.2015.0631},
	author = {Gortmaker, Steven L and Wang, Y Claire and Long, Michael W and Giles, Catherine M and Ward, Zachary J and Barrett, Jessica L and Kenney, Erica L and Sonneville, Kendrin R and Afzal, Amna Sadaf and Resch, Stephen C and Cradock, Angie L}
}
