December 20, 2001
		Obesity Edging Toward Smoking as Common Preventable Death According to a study printed in the December 12 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, approximately 300,000 Americans die each year from illnesses caused or exacerbated by obesity, making it just behind tobacco use as the chief cause of preventable death. U.S. Surgeon General David Satcher asked for reforms to be taken on by schools, communities and the food industry to combat obesity. "We're not talking about quick-fix diets," Dr. Satcher said. "We're talking about lifestyles." From 1986 to 1998, the number of non-Hispanic white children who wer eoverweight doubled from 6% to 12%. Research suggests that roughly one in five African-American and Hispanic children are overweight, an enormous 120% increase in just 12 years. "These trends carry enormous public health implications, because of the known effects of excess body weight on the risk for type 2 diabetes, heart disease and other complications," siad Dr. David Ludwig, director of the obesity program at Children's Hospital in Boston. The poor have an increased likelihood to be overweight. Dr. Satcher noted that in inner cities, fast-food restaurants are far more common than sources of more healthful foods. Dr. Satcher urged communities to study "fast-food marketing" and he encouraged government projects to increase access to plant foods. Among his other recommendations are: > Schools must include daily physical education for every grade. > Schools must provide more healthful food options are better enforce federal rules restricting students' access to junk food in vending machines. > The food industry should promote more healthful food choices, including "reasonable portion sizes." There are multiple contributing factors adding to the rise in childhood obesity, from a sedentary lifestyle, to parents relying on fast food to feed their families. "This is a little like the Agatha Christie story, Murder on the Orient Express, where there are many suspects and all of them are guilty," said study co-author Harold A. Pollack, Ph.D., of the University of Michigan. "The best explanation is that there are many factors pushing kids toward becoming overweight. Children are consuming a higher percentage of their calories in high-fat foods and sodas, and they are more inactive than ever." Pollack and co-author Richard S. Strauss, MD, write that childhood weight problems are like that of adolescent smoking and violence in that they all arise from deeply rooted behaviors and social practices. Michael Jacobson, executive director of the Center for Science in the Public Interest recommits funding public health campaigns by imposing small taxes on snack foods and soft drinks. About a dozen states now levy such a tax, and they raise $1 billion a year, Jacobson says. The National Restaurant Association rejected the idea that fast-food restaurants cause obesity as simplistic, and the National Soft Drink Association urged more focus on the exercise recommendations.