Legal approaches to the obesity epidemic: an introduction.

In the spring of 2003, the Public Health Advocacy Institute, whose mission is to explore law in common cause with public health, held its first annual conference on " Legal Approaches to the Obesity Epidemic. " The goal of this groundbreaking conference was to initiate a national examination of a crucial policy question: How can the law play a role in counteracting the public health threat presented by the widespread, increasing incidence of overweight and obesity both in the United States and globally? Following this initial conference, the Institute began a series of discussions focusing on intersections between public-health obesity reduction objectives and the instruments of law. These examinations have dealt primarily with the U.S. experiencenot inappropriately, since it is in food marketing and promotion practices originating in the United States that the epidemic is rooted. Yet, our examinations have pushed to bring an international focus to the conversation. As the legal community is realizing, the distinction between domestic and international is becoming conceptually untenable. As we continue to work, the Institute strives to broaden its discussion of legal approaches to obesity to become truly global in its approach. The papers in this Special Section are the product of these ongoing discussions. The papers in this Special Section have been prepared by practitioners in both public health and law who participate in or are affiliated with the Institute's Obesity-Law Task Force. Each paper has undergone a review process within and beyond the Task Force, as well as a vetting by the Institute's staff. Taken together, they are an accurate reflection of the work of the Institute in this area. Individually, these