US lawmakers have set out on a war footing to tackle childhood obesity and First Lady Michelle Obama is leading the full-on attack.

"We're in the process of launching a nationwide effort to dealing with the obesity epidemic in this country," she said at the start of a meeting which included Health Secretary Kathleen Sebelius.

One of the "pieces about this challenge is that this problem is imminently solvable, and that's the good news. But it's going to require us working together," added Obama, who before her husband's election was vice president of a Chicago hospital.

About 10 percent of US babies and children are obese and about 18 percent of all adolescents, according to figures published in January.

To reverse the trend, "we're going to try to increase the number of healthy schools in this country," Obama said.

"We're going to work hard to increase the level of regular physical activity that kids are getting in this country."

She added that one of the toughest challenges was improving access to affordable, health foods "because there are many food deserts in this nation, which makes it difficult for families trying to access good options."

The first lady added that they also wanted to empower consumers to make better choices about the food they buy.

Source-AFP
TAN