Governments at UN summit pledge to do more to prevent malnutrition, including from obesity

More than 170 governments have pledged to do more to prevent malnutrition around the globe, adopting a new voluntary set of guidelines to promote healthy diets and reduce levels of obesity.

Delegates approved the guidelines Wednesday at the start of a three-day U.N. nutrition summit in Rome.

The guidelines note that wars, natural disasters and epidemics such as Ebola can all have devastating effects on nutrition levels and called for the safe distribution of food and medical supplies to people in need. Governments pledged to invest more in nutrition programs and agriculture policies.

Tackling the other side of the malnutrition spectrum, the guidelines also call on governments to protect consumers, especially children, from "inappropriate marketing and publicity of food" to reduce growing obesity levels.