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Comment and Health

Why nutrition needs to be on the educational agenda

Nutrition must be as essential as maths or science at our educational institutions to solve the US obesity crisis, says Aman Majmudar

By Aman Majmudar

10 April 2024

New Scientist. Science news and long reads from expert journalists, covering developments in science, technology, health and the environment on the website and the magazine.

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March was National Nutrition Month in the US, the latest in a decades-long campaign to improve eating habits. This year’s theme was “Beyond the Table“, highlighting how food gets from farms to markets to our plates, how we might store and treat food safely at home and how we can reduce food waste.

Though these are important topics, such education must happen more often if it is to help curb a worsening chronic illness crisis. Nearly half of US adults will be obese in 2030. Obesity increases the risk of over 200 other conditions, from arthritis to breast cancer.…

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