Does The Governement Care That We Are All Getting Fat? Share
Feb 28th, 2009 by Jenny Williams
Americans are getting fatter every year, simple as that. We are packing on the pounds at an ever increasing rate and each year it gets worse. Many of us are sacrificing our health because of our addiction to super-sized meals at fast food restaurants according to obesity experts.
The fact is more than 60 percent of U.S. adults are overweight, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). And about 15 percent of children and adolescents ages 6 to 19 are overweight and this percentage is increasing each year.
The CDC also says that poor diet and physical inactivity account for more than 400,000 premature deaths each year in the United States, second only to deaths related to smoking.
Overweight people are also likely to develop any number of preventable diseases such as gallbladder disease, stroke, diabetes, heart disease or high blood pressure.
Obesity can also cause sleep apnea which affects quality sleep that our bodies need and our joints can also literally wear away due to osteoarthritis. Being overweight also increases our risk for some cancers like breast, prostate, endometrial and colon cancer.
But there is hope for overweight Americans. They can take small, achievable steps to improve their health and reverse the obesity epidemic. This message is the cornerstone of a national education campaign announced in March 2004 by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
Also in March 2004, the Food and Drug Administration’s Obesity Working Group released a report called “Calories Count” that highlights actions the FDA is taking to better educate consumers in choosing a healthier diet.
These actions include strengthening food labeling, educating consumers about maintaining a healthy diet and weight, and encouraging restaurants to provide calorie and nutrition information.
In addition, efforts were increased in enforcing food labeling so serving sizes were realistically portrayed and additional emphasis was placed on developing new foods that are lower in calories and healthier in an effort to reduce obesity.
