The role of real-world data in the prevention and structural approach to childhood and adolescent obesity in Spain
e202607041
Keywords:
Obesity, Real-world data, Public Health prevention, Social inequalities, Real-world evidence, Health information systems, Health Population Database, Secure processing environmentAbstract
Childhood and adolescent obesity represent a priority challenge for public health due to its high prevalence, long-term consequences and strong link to social inequalities. Compared to approaches focused exclusively on the individual, structural and intersectoral preventive strategies have proven to be more effective at the population level.
In this context, real-world data (RWD) offer a unique opportunity to analyze the distribution of obesity longitudinally, evaluate the impact of public policies, and anticipate emerging inequalities. This article advocates for the systematic incorporation of real-world evidence (RWE) in the planning and evaluation of preventive interventions in childhood obesity, highlighting the potential of infrastructures such as the Andalusian Population Health Database (BPS) and the PAGEM secure analysis platform. RWD allows clinical trajectories, obesogenic environments and social gaps to be characterized with an unprecedented level of granularity. Its systematic use in public health could mark a turning point towards more proactive, equitable and sustainable models. In short, the article proposes a roadmap for the ethical, safe and effective use of RWD in the structural approach to childhood obesity in Spain.
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Funding data
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Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación
Grant numbers PRTR-C17.I1 -
Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación
Grant numbers PID2020-117979RB-I00, PID2023-152380OB-C21, TED2021-132346B-I00 -
Instituto de Salud Carlos III
Grant numbers IMP/00019, PMP24/00024 -
Consejería de Salud y Consumo, Junta de Andalucía
Grant numbers IE19_259 FPS







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