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Pastimes : Just another thread -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: SIer formerly known as Joe B. who wrote (291)	10/4/2000 12:16:53 PM
From: AugustWest	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 363

I gotta do it later on. Thanks. (PR NEWSWIRE) Obesity Up Six Percent in One Year Obesity Up Six Percent in One Year American Obesity Association Calls on Politicians to 'Wake Up' WASHINGTON, Oct. 4 /PRNewswire/ -- With a new report in today's Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) showing obesity in the U.S. increasing almost six percent from 1998 to 1999, the American Obesity Association today urged politicians, parents and educators to take immediate action to control this spiraling epidemic. "Parents, politicians and educators need to wake up and see what we are doing to our children," said Judith Stern, vice president of AOA. "Prevention is essential. Schools have thrown recess and physical education out the back door and have pulled in junk food in the front door. They are making our kids fatter every day. It is time to stop balancing school budgets on the hips of our children." Two weeks ago, AOA released a survey of over 1,000 parents. Almost 80 percent of parents said they were opposed to reducing recess and physical education for more academics. The JAMA report, "The Continuing Epidemic of Obesity in the United States," indicates obesity has increased among all age groups, both sexes, all regions, all income and educational levels. In 1991, no state reported obesity rates at or over 20 percent; in 1999, 16 states reported such levels. "A jump of this magnitude in only one year is as unbelievable as it is scary," says Richard L. Atkinson, M.D., president of the American Obesity Association. "Medicine has never seen an epidemic of this proportion." Adds Morgan Downey, AOA's executive director, "The irony of these figures is that the two Presidential candidates have focused their campaigns on children's education and children's health yet ignore an epidemic exploding all around them. No one candidate has spelled out how he will stem the tide of obesity in this country." Authors of the JAMA report conclude, "This continuing trend in obesity is a critical public health threat in the United States ... Unfortunately, the prevalence of obesity is likely to continue increasing in the years ahead. The time has come to develop a national, comprehensive plan to prevent and treat the obesity epidemic." Obesity affects more 20 percent of adults and 10-15 percent of children. Nearly 30 percent of adults and 10-14 percent of children are overweight and at risk for obesity. Obesity is responsible for nearly as many preventable deaths as smoking (300,000), and cost society about $100 billion a year according to AOA. Founded in 1995, the American Obesity Association (AOA) is a non-profit organization whose fundamental mission is to have obesity regarded as a disease of epidemic proportions. SOURCE American Obesity Association -0- 10/04/2000 /CONTACT: Brian Ruberry of Allhealth Public Relations, 301-948-1709 or br@allhealthpr.com for the American Obesity Association/ /Web site: obesity.org CO: American Obesity Association; American Medical Association ST: District of Columbia IN: HEA SU: * end of story *