European Health Ministers Take On Obesity

Today's story by Maria Cheng from myway.com via Raw Story reports that:

"European health ministers from 53 countries approved the world's first charter to fight obesity on Thursday, vowing greater action against the epidemic of expanding waistlines across the continent.

The charter, approved in Istanbul, Turkey, was drafted by the World Health Organization in consultation with its European member states. It is the first real attempt to compel national authorities to take concrete action to combat obesity."

According to the article,  half of all Europeans, ( that's a large group of disparate people!,) and 20 percent of its children are overweight.

"One of the charter's more contentious inclusions is an obligation for the private sector to limit the marketing of fatty, sugary foods to children. It calls for specific regulatory measures to "substantially reduce" the advertising of unhealthy foods to children.

The clause implies that governments should introduce legislation regarding marketing to children, with an eventual move to adopting an international code of practice. In the past, the food industry has fought against such regulation, since it may eat into their profits."

When is the summit of the Americas on this issue?