Food Policies’ Roles on Nutrition Goals and Outcomes: Connecting of Food and Public Health Systems

Nutrition exists when food security is combined with a sanitary environment, adequate health services, and proper care and feeding practices to ensure a healthy life for all household members. Despite increased attention to undernutrition, it remains a devastating multi-faceted problem for infants, young children, and women around the world, resulting in increased morbidity, mortality, and long-term disability. Undernutrition can also lead to poor health into adulthood, which affects social and economic development of nations. On the other end of the malnutrition spectrum, overweight and obesity are growing problems, linked to changing diets and activity patterns, which also lead to serious health problems and impact the economies of nations. This chapter attempts to unpack the importance of food and agriculture policies on nutrition outcomes and why engagement of food and public health systems remain critically important. External pressures, such as climate variability and population growth, that tax these systems are discussed, as well as the globalization of our food system and why that has shifted dietary patterns and nutrition and health status trends. The multi-sectoral integration of food and health systems and its importance to improve nutrition is demonstrated through three models. Three very brief case studies are presented that help exemplify some of the food and health system trends that influence policy and ultimately, nutrition outcomes.