Overview of Health4EUKids approach to child obesity in Europe

Abstract The scope of Health4EUkids was to promote healthy lifestyles in families with children across participating MSs, with a specific aim on preventing childhood obesity. The program focused on increasing physical activity and improving dietary habits among children, families and communities, while focusing on social norms, recognition and self-esteem, in deprived districts throughout MSs. Health4EUkids also aimed to study and address the different prerequisites for MSs for implementing either of the two best practices: Grunau Moves or Smart Family. Additionally, it focused on enhancing the long-term sustainability of these best practices and facilitate transfer of acquired knowledge and experience to other MSs. The results focused on the identification of concrete challenges for each participating organization and country for child obesity prevention and policy solutions in the form of best practices and innovative solutions for collective action between the Member States and the Commission, to tackle the main public health challenges in child obesity.