A countrywide effort to control unhealthy food marketing and improve nutrition awareness among children has shown promising results in reducing childhood obesity risk, according to a new study published in The Lancet.

Researchers found that Chile’s strict food regulation policy, introduced in 2016, helped lower the risk of overweight and obesity among young children by changing the food environment around them. The findings suggest that government-led measures such as front-of-package warning labels, restrictions on unhealthy food in schools, and limits on advertising aimed at children can play an important role in tackling the growing childhood obesity crisis.

The study examined health data from more than 300,000 Chilean schoolchildren aged 4 to 6 years, comparing obesity trends before and after the implementation of the Food Labelling and Advertising Law (FLAL).

The policy required food manufacturers to place prominent warning labels on products high in sugar, saturated fats, salt, or calories. It also restricted the sale of such products in schools and prohibited marketing campaigns for unhealthy foods targeting children.

Within 18 months of the policy’s first phase, researchers observed a 2.9% reduction in the risk of overweight or obesity among girls and a 2.4% reduction among boys.

Lead researcher Guillermo Paraje said the findings provide evidence that a combination of national-level interventions can help reduce childhood obesity.

“Although individual measures such as sugar taxes have shown health benefits, this is among the first studies to demonstrate that a comprehensive package of policies can reduce childhood overweight and obesity risk at a national level,” researchers noted.

The impact could be even greater in later years, as Chile strengthened the policy in 2018 and 2019 with stricter limits on unhealthy ingredients. These later phases were not included in the current analysis.

Researchers highlighted that even a modest reduction in childhood obesity rates could have significant long-term health benefits. Excess weight during childhood is linked with a higher risk of developing conditions such as type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, and cardiovascular disease later in life.

The George Institute for Global Health researchers, in an accompanying editorial, said the study demonstrates that governments need to move beyond isolated measures and adopt comprehensive strategies to create healthier food environments.

They emphasized that mandatory nutrition warning labels, healthier school food standards, and restrictions on advertising unhealthy products to children could become effective tools for countries struggling with rising childhood obesity rates.

With childhood obesity becoming a major public health challenge worldwide, the Chile experience offers a possible roadmap for governments, including countries facing rapid increases in childhood overweight due to changing diets, increased consumption of processed foods, and aggressive food marketing targeted at children.