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The nation got a report card on obesity today, and the country flunked. Despite all attempts to attack the problem, a new survey shows the adult obesity rate increased in 23 states last year and no state showed a decline. Here’s Dan Harris.
The battle against obesity has been going on for years, with officials doing things like taxing sugary sodas, putting healthier foods in schools and requiring longer, tougher gym classes. But still, Americans keep getting fatter. Today’s study says the fattest state is Mississippi, where nearly a third of all adults are obese. The slimmest state is Colorado, but even there 19% of the adults are obese. Childhood obesity rates have tripled since 1980. Again it’s worst in Mississippi, where 44.4% of children between 10 and 17 are either obese or overweight. This trend may only be exacerbated by the recession as the price of healthy foods rises and so do rates of depression and stress which are often linked to obesity. This crisis is sure to weigh all of us down eventually because obese people require more expensive health care, as president Obama noted today at a health care forum.
Obama: If we can help somebody control obesity, they are less likely to get diabetes. And if they are less likely to get diabetes that means that we are gonna be saving a whole lot of money in hospital costs.
The authors of today’s report say the government needs to take rapid and dramatic steps, perhaps regulating food advertising to children as has been done in some countries in Europe.
Kelly: this just has to stop if we are going to have any hope of dealing with obesity problem.
The study’s authors also say the government needs to start thinking out of the box, things as simple as requiring new communities to have good sidewalks for people to run and walk on could help they say.
