Elsevier

Preventive Medicine

Volume 29, Issue 6, December 1999, Pages 563-570
Preventive Medicine

Regular Article
Dissecting Obesogenic Environments: The Development and Application of a Framework for Identifying and Prioritizing Environmental Interventions for Obesity

https://doi.org/10.1006/pmed.1999.0585Get rights and content

Abstract

Background. The “obesogenicity” of modern environments is fueling the obesity pandemic. We describe a framework, known as ANGELO (analysis grid for environments linked to obesity), which is a conceptual model for understanding the obesogenicity of environments and a practical tool for prioritizing environmental elements for research and intervention.

Methods: Development of the ANGELO framework. The basic framework is a 2 × 4 grid which dissects the environment into environmental size (micro and macro) by type: physical (what is available), economic (what are the costs), political (what are the “rules”), and sociocultural (what are the attitudes and beliefs). Within this grid, the elements which influence food intake and physical activity are characterized as obe sogenic or “leptogenic” (promoting leanness).

Results: Application of the ANGELO framework. The ANGELO framework has been piloted at the population level (island communities) to prioritize the settings/sectors for intervention and at the setting level (fast food outlets) to prioritize research needs and interventions. Environmental elements were prioritized by rating their validity (evidence of impact), relevance (to the local context), and potential changeability.

Conclusions. The ANGELO framework appears to be a flexible and robust instrument for the needs analysis and problem identification stages of reducing the obe sogenicity of modern environments.

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    We are grateful for the support from the Health Research Council of New Zealand and The National Heart Foundation of New Zealand and input from the Secretariat of Pacific Communities, the Pacific Nutritionists Forum, and Heather Wright of Auckland Healthcare.

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    To whom reprint requests should be addressed at Department of Community Health, University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland, New Zealand. Fax: (+64,9) 373-7503. E-mail: [email protected].

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