What We Can Do to Combat Obesity

What We Can Do to Combat Obesity: This week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that in 2009, no state had met a target of reducing obesity prevalence among adults to 15 percent. Dr. Teresa Quattrin from the CDC states that, "People are eating more, and eating less healthy food high in calories. In our research, we looked at the food intake of children 2 to 5 years old, and 7 out of 10 were consuming significantly more calories than the recommended 1,200 per day. There are children who eat a whole carton of strawberries, and their parents think that's OK. Too much healthy food can contribute to the problem, too. Extra calories, along with low physical activity, lead to obesity -- especially in people with a predisposition to developing the disease, and certainly in kids whose parents are obese. Parents should educate themselves by finding out their children's body mass index, and their own. Young children who don't look overweight may still be obese. Parents also need to be good role models. If the home environment is such that the refrigerator and pantry are full of junk food instead of fruits and vegetables, the child grows up feeling that's the way he or she should eat. Being active is also important."