Novo Nordisk launches global initiative to combat childhood obesity

DENMARK—Novo Nordisk has launched a new global initiative, the Childhood Obesity Prevention Initiative (COPI), to address childhood obesity in disadvantaged urban communities worldwide.

The initiative brings together a coalition of global and local partners, including Delivery Associates and the Behavioural Insights Team (BIT), to support design, implementation, and evaluation of interventions.

This initiative will also be supported by cross-sector partners such as city governments, academic institutions, and non-profit organizations.

COPI’s primary goal is to collaborate with these partners to accelerate the prevention of childhood obesity in disadvantaged urban areas worldwide.

Six cities across Brazil, Canada, France, Japan, South Africa, and Spain will initially participate in the project, where tailored solutions focusing on physical activity and healthy eating will be designed and implemented.

The success of these interventions will be measured after 24 months using a comprehensive monitoring and evaluation framework.

This data will provide valuable insights and guide city and community leaders globally on developing, executing, assessing, and maintaining effective interventions against childhood obesity.

This initiative’s core is Novo Nordisk’s commitment to addressing obesity as a chronic disease, which forms part of the company’s broader social responsibility strategy.

The program is built upon a robust evidence-based framework designed to evaluate the impact of the interventions.

Health behaviour and well-being changes, particularly focusing on children’s health-related quality of life and body mass index (BMI), will be assessed.

Data will be collected from children aged 6-13, with follow-ups conducted one and two years after the interventions.

A controlled study design will be utilised, with approximately 1,000 children in each city’s intervention and control groups.

COPI draws on more than a decade of experience from Novo Nordisk’s Cities for Better Health program, which focuses on city-based health initiatives.

In her remarks, Katrine DiBona, Global Head of Sustainability & Public Affairs at Novo Nordisk, emphasized that childhood obesity is rising at alarming rates globally, threatening the health and well-being of current and future generations.

She noted that the initiative’s focus on disadvantaged communities would provide essential evidence and a unique, data-driven framework to support city leaders in combating childhood obesity.

As of 2022, over 390 million children aged 5–19 was classified as overweight, with 160 million living with obesity.

This places them at a significantly higher risk of developing conditions such as type 2 diabetes and increases the likelihood of adult obesity.

Children from lower socioeconomic backgrounds are particularly vulnerable, making the initiative’s focus on these communities both timely and crucial

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