When an article on obesity ends up in the Business section of the New York Times, you may think, now they’re paying attention.  Obesity has received a lot of press in the past year.  However, television shows like Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution, a high profile initiative by the First Lady, food taxes, and special reports by all the major news outlets, still cannot quell the rising number of overweight Americans.

“Eat less, move more”, “Say no to junk food”, “Calories In/Calories Out”.  These are the mantras of those trying to lose unwanted pounds.   Much of this is easy to understand from the health advocate’s standpoint; but, as this analysis from the New York Times suggests, it’s more than the high calorie food and lack of exercise that’s keeping Americans fat:  it’s the environment of our society. 

“Unfortunately, behavior changes won’t work on their own without seismic societal shifts…because eating too much and exercising too little are merely symptoms of a much larger malady. The real problem is a landscape littered with inexpensive fast-food meals; saturation advertising for fatty, sugary products; inner cities that lack supermarkets; and unhealthy, high-stress workplaces.”

Fast food is cheaper than healthy food.  So, cutting government food subsidies that promote an obesogenic environment is one suggested way to lower those climbing rates of overweight Americans.  Yet another popular method to combat the problem is getting the private sector involved in workplace wellness programs; having healthy employees is advantageous for the employer.  The British are placing restrictions on advertising unhealthy foods during children’s programming and making cooking classes mandatory by 2011 for all school children ages 11-14. 

All great suggestions.   Our work and mission are being acknowledged.  Now it’s time to call for action.  Please submit your comments and suggestions. 

Do you use public transportation to get around your city or town?  If you do, a new study suggests that the extra bit of walking to and from your rail or bus stop will help you lose weight. 

John M. MacDonald, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania who studied the effects of a new light-rail line in Charlotte, N.C says that using the subway or bus increased the physical activity, and therefore the body-mass index, of people who started using it.The New York Times reported that those Charlotte residents surveyed who began to walk to the light rail instead of driving to work walked on average 1.2 miles total on their commutes to and from work.  The average weight reduction found was 1.18 B.M.I. point.

If you commute by public transportation, you can increase your daily physical activity by getting off a stop earlier.  Everyone else can incorporate more exercise into their daily routine by using the stairs instead of the escalator or elevator, walking or biking short distances instead of using the car, or parking far away from the entrance of a store where you are shopping.

What are other ways to incorporate more movement into your life?

Many children in our country start off Saturday morning with their favorite cartoon or television show. This is prime time for advertisers to sell the latest trend in children’s toys and foods. The problem is that the latest trend in food is generally an alarmingly unhealthy choice for children. A debate has sparked between the food industry and the federal government about what qualifies as an appropriate and healthy food to advertise to children. According to a recent New York Times article, the food industry began an initiative in 2007, to fight childhood obesity, and are trying to advertise and sell healthier choices for kids.

Unfortunately, the food industry has an odd conception of what is healthy for a child to eat and what is not; Froot Loops with 12 grams of sugar per serving are deemed healthy by their standard. While that amount of sugar is clearly a less than healthy choice for kids, the battle between the food industry giants and the federal government will continue to rage on. 

Although it is tough to fight such a big industry on a topic like this, we can all take our own steps to raise happy and healthy children.

Since sugar-filled breakfast foods are one of the largest culprits of target advertising, we came up with a few healthier options to feed your children first thing in the morning:

• Avocado on an Ezekiel muffin or whole grain toast sprinkled with sea salt and extra virgin olive oil
• Raw muesli with fresh berries
• Oatmeal with organic raisins and a touch of maple syrup
• Baked apples or pears sprinkled with oats and/or chopped nuts drizzled with honey or maple syrup
• Fresh fruit smoothies
• Almond butter and banana sandwiches on whole grain toast
• Breakfast egg sandwich with a whole grain muffin, turkey bacon and organic cheese
• Red quinoa with berries and/or bananas, warm milk and honey or maple syrup

What do you serve for your kids in the morning?

Obesity is a multi-layered health issue in America.  Many health advocates are calling out sodas, fast food, lifestyle and genetics as culprits on the list of those to blame for the crisis.  Now there is a new name to add to the list of usual suspects in the fight against weight gain: obesogens.

Researchers have targeted obesogens which are chemicals that disrupt the function of hormonal systems.  An article from MSNBC details how they “enter our bodies from a variety of sources — natural hormones found in soy products, hormones administered to animals, plastics in some food and drink packaging, ingredients added to processed foods, and pesticides sprayed on produce.  They act in a variety of ways: by mimicking human hormones such as estrogen, by misprogramming stem cells to become fat cells and, researchers think, by altering the function of genes.”

This research gives us more evidence and reason to advocate for organically grown whole foods.  As the article suggests, you can enjoy the foods you love, just make sure they are from natural sources free of antibiotics and chemicals.

Do you think that burgers and fries should remain off the list of foods for someone trying to lose weight even if they are of the all natural variety?

Will taxing and putting warning labels on soda discourage people from buying it?  Has this method discouraged people from using tobacco?  Should tax revenue from sodas and sugary beverages be used in anti-soda campaigns or put in a fund for healthier school food?  The rise in childhood obesity rates have the attention of lawmakers, but will raising prices on unhealthy foods keep kids from consuming them?

The Obama administration has a commitment to remove junk food, including sodas from schools.  This is a great first step in the fight against childhood obesity.  But, as Mark Bittman of the New York Times writes:  “a growing number of public health advocates are pushing for even more aggressive actions, urging that soda be treated like tobacco: with taxes, warning labels and a massive public health marketing campaign, all to discourage consumption.”

Taxing soda has the potential to raise over a billion dollars annually in New York State alone.  The question remains, where is the best place to apply this money?

Where do you think lawmakers should apply these funds?

Oklahoma City Mayor Mick Cornett hopes so.  He wants to inspire the residents of his city to be healthier and lose weight.  Mayor Cornett’s appeal is in response to his city listed as of one of the unhealthiest in America.  The OKC Million community challenge to lose a total of 1,000,000 pounds is open to all and everyone is encouraged to join.  Individuals, families, friends, corporations, churches, local organizations, community groups, sports teams, police departments, fire departments and schools are all welcome. 

When Oklahoma City residents join the site www.thiscityisgoingonadiet.com they have access to nutrition information, recipes, weight loss programs and success stories.  Sounds like a recipe for success! 

Watch this report from NBC Nightly News to see how Mayor Cornett’s city is accepting the challenge.

How healthy is your city?