It's Official: Obesity is Big News Says International Food Information Council

11/13/2003

From: Nick Alexander, alexander@ific.org, or Jennifer Schleman, schleman@ific.org, both of the the International Food Information Council, 202-296-6540

WASHINGTON, Nov. 13 -- New information indicates that the number of obesity-related stories appearing in the media has grown 1,100 percent in the past four years. This confirms what many consumers of daily newspapers and TV network news already sense -- obesity is a big news story.

According to data compiled by the International Food Information Council (IFIC) Foundation, a Washington, D.C.-based non-profit organization, the number of stories has grown from just 395 for the 12-month period ending September 30, 2000, to 4,767 for the 12 months ending September 30, 2003. These numbers are based on Internet monitoring of stories appearing daily in a sample of national and international print and electronic news sources.

A bar chart graphic tracking this dramatic increase in coverage can be found on the IFIC Foundation Web site at: http://ific.org/research/obesitytrends.cfm.

"Since 1995, the IFIC Foundation has monitored a broad range of diet, health, nutrition, and food safety issues to better understand the communication and science environment," said IFIC Foundation President and CEO Sylvia Rowe. "Since the obesity issue emerged in 1999, the unprecedented escalation in attention to overweight and obesity, not only in the U.S. but globally, shows the importance of this public health issue."

The International Food Information Council (IFIC) Foundation is a Washington-based non-profit whose mission is to effectively communicate science-based information on health, nutrition, and food safety for the public good. The IFIC Foundation is supported primarily by the broad-based food, beverage, and agricultural industries.