Enabling children to be a healthy weight: What we need to do better in the first 1,000 days

A report from First Steps Nutrition Trust identifies key actions needed to protect children from overweight and obesity in the first 1,000 days of life, including requiring services to become Baby Friendly accredited

The report outlines 18 key actions needed to promote a healthy weight in the early years, including increasing investment in universal breastfeeding support, regulating the misleading commercial influence of food and drinks for infants and young children, and offering greater support for families to practise age-appropriate introduction of solids and responsive feeding.

The report also calls for increased funding for all neonatal, maternity, health visiting services, children’s centres and midwifery and health visiting courses in universities to become UNICEF UK Baby Friendly Initiative accredited, saying:

We welcome the inclusion of UNICEF UK Baby Friendly Initiative accreditation for maternity settings in the new NHS Long Term Plan and urge the Government to fund expansion to
ensure all neonatal, health visiting and children’s centre or ‘family hub’ settings and university midwifery and health visiting courses are also accredited.

To learn more about the report, including key recommendations and the 33-point road map highlighting a healthier journey through the first 1,000 days, visit First Steps Nutrition Trust’s website.