Citation
Popkin, Barry M. (2009). Economists' Insights into the Obesity Crisis.
Trends in Endocrinology & Metabolism, 20(9), 417. PMCID: PMC2900788
Abstract
The book, fat economics: nutrition, health, and economic policy, provides an overview of the way economists view the current obesity problem, their analysis of its causes, and consequences and options for intervening at the policy level. Over the past half century, economists have used their tools to study topics as varied as determining interventions effective in enhancing student learning, questioning whether nature or nature affects IQ and cognitive development, and studying designs to improve the effectiveness of child care. One branch of economics, called human capital or human resource economics, has been the focus of economists specialized in the education, health and nutrition fields. These economists examine how various factors affected smoking, cocaine and other decisions, how husbands and wives resolve power sharing, how intra-household decisions are made, and factors determining a variety of measures of health status. With respect to the latter, Robert Fogel, the 1993 Nobel Laureate in economics, focused parts of his research on how height is correlated with health and well-being and as a measure of economic investment. Two other Nobel Laureate economists, Amartya Sen and Gunnar Myrdal, have written extensively on famine and hunger. Other economists, including the authors of this book, have ventured into the field of obesity and nutrition, publishing articles in diverse biomedical journals.
URL
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.tem.2009.08.001Reference Type
Journal Article
Year Published
2009
Journal Title
Trends in Endocrinology & Metabolism
Author(s)
Popkin, Barry M.
PMCID
PMC2900788
ORCiD
Popkin - 0000-0001-9495-9324
