The First Lady & the Childhood Obesity Crisis
One of the biggest public health crises our country has ever faced is finally getting serious attention.
During the State of the Union address Wednesday night, President
Obama announced that First Lady Michelle Obama was going to take on the
childhood obesity epidemic. I'd say the epidemic better watch out! It
now has a worthy adversary.
Mrs. Obama is stepping up to provide leadership, recognizing if we
don't take serious measures now, this generation of kids could be the
first in U.S. history to live shorter, less healthy lives than their
parents. Childhood obesity rates have more than tripled in the past
three decades. One in three kids is now obese or overweight. Children
and teens are developing health problems that used to be only seen in
middle age adults - like type 2 diabetes and high cholesterol.
But leadership alone will not fix all of the underlying factors that
have contributed to the rise in obesity over the years. To have an
impact, this leadership needs to be followed by a clear, comprehensive
national strategy to combat obesity - including policies, programs, and
funding - to result in real change. A national strategy is needed to
define the roles and responsibilities for federal, state and local
governments and promote collaboration among businesses, communities,
schools, and families. We need to think about policy changes that could
help make healthy choices easier choices for millions of Americans -
including things like menu labeling and improving school lunches and
physical education. We need resources - a dedicated funding mechanism
for prevention and public health like the Prevention and Public Health
Fund and a Community Health Center Fund proposed in the Senate health
reform bill and a Public Health Investment Fund proposed in the House
health reform bill - to support more community prevention programs,
like walking programs and nutrition counseling. And we need to rethink
health and consider the impact of all policies ranging from
transportation (for instance, do our policies promote sidewalks and
safe parks?) to agriculture subsidies.
It's great to talk about improving school meals, improving the
quality of physical activity in schools, limiting screen time, and
increasing the availability of affordable healthy foods in all
communities, but unless we have real policy change and funding for
programs, talk can turn into the public policy equivalent of empty
calories.
Right now, we're failing our kids and resigning them to a future
that isn't fair - and isn't their fault. There are many forces beyond
individual control that are contributing to the rise in obesity rates.
There are factors that contribute to obesity that are often beyond
individual control. For starters, we're been kids feeding unhealthy
school lunches and not letting them have enough time to be active
during the day. Healthy foods are often the most expensive, making it
hard for parents to help kids maintain a well-balanced diet. Marketing
aimed at kids often promote high sugar and lower nutrition foods.
Portion sizes and the use of salt and fat in foods have grown
dramatically over the years. Many parents worry about the safety of
parks and recreation spaces in neighborhoods, limiting their peace of
mind to just let their kids go out to play. Activity time has to
compete with the attractions of spending hours in front of the TV,
computers, and video games. And, many parents work long hours and have
long commutes, making it hard to have time and energy at the end of the
day to be active with their kids.
Thanks to Mrs. Obama, the country is beginning to tackle the
epidemic. We hope that this is just the first step. We know that
effectively addressing this enormity of this public health crisis will
require a marathon, not a sprint.
posted by: IAH,on Feb 03, 07:19
Source: Huffington Post
URL:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jeffrey-levi/the-first-lady-the-childh_b_445032.html