National Nutrition Surveillance Centre one of UCD’s Research Impact Case Study winners
The National Nutrition Surveillance Centre (NNSC) at the School of Public Health, Physiotherapy and
Sports Science (SPHPSS) is one of the eight runners up for the UCD Research Impact Case Study
competition for its work on the Childhood Obesity Surveillance Initiative (COSI) and the impact this
research has not only academically and scientifically, but also on the population’s health.
In 2008, the Department of Health and the Health Service Executive (HSE) commissioned the NNSC
to commence COSI in Ireland. This initiative was jointly developed by the WHO Regional Office for
Europe and participating member states. It aims to systematically measure obesity among primary
school children across Europe.
This research is led by NNSC’s director Professor Cecily Kelleher and many other colleagues in
SPHPSS were and are involved, including Dr Mirjam Heinen, Dr Silvia Bel-Serrat, Dr Celine Murrin, Dr
Lachlan Mitchell, Ms Isobel Stanley and Dr John Mehegan. The COSI research in Ireland has helped
policymakers build a picture of the weight status of Irish children. It has been used by the
Department of Health to define targets for overweight and obesity levels in children, as mentioned
in the government’s Obesity Policy and Action Plan 2016-2025, ‘A Healthy Weight for Ireland’ and
will be further used to monitor these levels over time. This award is an acknowledgement of all the
work that has taken place over the last decade on childhood obesity surveillance in the NNSC and of
its impact.
Watch details of the case study (opens in a new window)here and read the case study here.
Details on COSI:http://www.ucd.ie/nnsc/research/ourresearch/childhoodobesitysurveillanceinitiativecosi/