https://doi.org/10.37527/2023.73.S1
1Universidade Do Estado Do Rio De Janeiro, Rio De Janeiro, Brazil
Introduction Nowadays obesity and NCDs are the most important cause of death and inability. Brazil has a high prevalence of obesity, it raises yearly, and unhealthy diets and the excessive consumption of calories are the changeable factors that contribute in an important way to its increase. The food environment induces unhealthy diets and is oriented by public policies, food industries, and contemporary ways of life. Objective: Analyze the scope of Brazilian public policies for the prevention and control of obesity, through the INFORMAS/ Food-EPI protocol. Materials and methods: It is a mixed approach, with qualitative and quantitative data collection. The Public policies evaluation was conducted based on the protocol INFORMAS. Experts from academia, civil society, and government assessed the level of implementation of food policies compared with international best practices. The first phase was a comprehensive review of the implementation of food environment‐related public policies in Brazil. The second step was the validation of information with experts. All the actions were compared with the international best practices and the national actions were rated due to the level of implementation. After these steps, the experts listed a set of actions to improve the current policies. The actions listed were evaluated due to their importance and achievability. Results: The actions, programs, and public policies initially evaluated and validated were linked to each analysis Domain. The domains with the largest number of actions were: Monitoring (20.3%); Leadership (18.85%); Governance (13.5%); and Resources and financing (12.8%). The food Retail domain had no associated reference. Food Trade had only one reference. Interaction Platforms, Health for all policies, and Food Composition were only 3% associated and the other Domains (food labeling, price of food, and food supply) ranged from 5% to 7%. When compared to international best practices, 22% (n= 11) of the actions were considered as a low level of implementation, 46% (n=23) were considered as a medium level, and only 18% (n= 9) were considered as a high level. Conclusion: The results will provide elements to support and improve the national policies that aim the promotion of healthy food environment and obesity prevention.
Keywords: Brazil, public policies, obesity, INFORMAS/Food- EPI protocol.