Chile’s Food Policies Linked to Lower Childhood Obesity Rates
Over the years, our head writer, Pat Hartman, has tirelessly covered how advertising to children, along with questionable food additives designed to appeal to kids’ palates, can lead to increased obesity rates. Here’s just one of the many snippets:
Weird stuff inside the food, and enticing, persuasive words about the food: Both in their own distinctive ways are responsible for the overwhelming wave of obesity that has engulfed society…
When it comes to pouring enormous amounts of money into the economy, visual and auditory stimuli both play their parts. Every little purchase of a convenience-store doughnut, glimpsed by someone who just went in there to pay for gas, performs its role in the overall ascendency of food.
Now, a major new study suggests that comprehensive food policies designed to limit children’s exposure to unhealthy foods may help reduce childhood obesity.
Researchers found that Chile’s nationwide strategy, which combines front-of-package (FOP) warning labels, restrictions on food marketing, and regulations governing foods sold in schools, was associated with measurable declines in excess weight among young children. Published in The Lancet, the observational study provides some of the strongest evidence to date that a coordinated policy approach can positively influence children’s health population-wide.
Apparently, Chile has long struggled with high rates of childhood overweight and obesity. In response, the country implemented the Food Labelling and Advertising Law (FLAL) in 2016, a sweeping set of regulations often described as one of the world’s most ambitious food policy initiatives.
The law introduced highly visible front-of-package warning labels on foods and beverages high in sugar, sodium, saturated fat, or calories. It also restricted the marketing of these products to children and prohibited their sale in schools. How impressive is that?
Researchers examined data from more than 321,000 children enrolled in prekindergarten, kindergarten, and first grade between 2012 and 2017. Their analysis found that children exposed to the policy had a lower likelihood of developing excess weight.
Among children between six and 18 months of age, exposure to the regulations was associated with approximately a 2% reduction in the probability of excess weight. While that number may appear modest, researchers note that even small improvements during early childhood can produce meaningful health benefits later in life.
According to the study’s authors, the greatest strength of Chile’s approach lies in the way multiple policies reinforce one another.
Dr. Guillermo Paraje, professor of Economics at the Adolfo Ibáñez University Business School and the study’s lead author, believes countries considering similar measures should avoid relying on a single intervention. He said:
This is because integrated policies usually work better than single ones… It makes no sense to have a good FOP labels system and to allow food companies to target children with their advertisements, giving them toys with their products or luring them with cartoons.
The study found that children who experienced the first phase of the FLAL demonstrated meaningful reductions in overweight risk. The strongest effects were observed among children exposed during kindergarten and first grade. Girls experienced a 2.85% lower probability of excess weight, while boys saw a 2.4% reduction.
Even children with shorter periods of exposure benefited. Girls who were exposed for only six months or during first grade alone had a 1.91% lower probability of excess weight, while boys showed a 2.24% reduction. (Researchers used data from Chile’s Nutritional Map and Vulnerability Survey to evaluate the law’s impact.)
Despite growing evidence supporting food labeling and marketing restrictions, implementation efforts often face opposition from industry groups. One common argument is that stricter regulations could negatively affect employment or economic growth. Dr. Paraje says the available evidence does not support those concerns:
Quite often, industry claims that these policies affect employment. But these claims are unfounded… There are studies published for Chile, Peru, and Mexico showing that, after labeling policies, there were no changes in employment or wages attributable to them.
Dr. Paraje also pointed to recent debates in Argentina, where efforts have emerged to repeal front-of-package labeling regulations adopted in 2022. Critics of repeal efforts argue that the labels have already helped consumers identify less healthy products and make more informed purchasing decisions.
As childhood obesity continues to rise globally, Chile’s experience may provide a useful roadmap for policymakers looking to create healthier food environments and improve children’s long-term health outcomes.
Your responses and feedback are welcome!
Source: “The impact of Chile’s multipronged food labelling and advertising law on early childhood excess weight: a cohort difference-in-differences study,” The Lancet, 6/11/26
Source: “From Chile to the world: Food policy package linked to lower childhood obesity risk,” Nutrition Insight, 6/19/26
Source: “Combined Food Policies, Including Labeling and Advertising Bans, Plausibly Reduce Childhood Obesity,” Pharmacy Times, 6/17/26
Image by Marcia Salido/Pexels
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