matclone

Some good news, there seems to be some leveling off instead of the steady growth we've seen for several decades. However, it says nothing about children, whom I assume are continuing to grow--disproportionately.

Nonetheless, the fact is: 1/3 of American adults are obese--a serious public health issue which the article seems to downplay.

Any of the presidential candidates who has the guts to tackle national health care, should consider and have a plan for stemming the tide of obesity. Planting a burger king or 7-11 on every corner isn't doing it.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20071128/...usa_obesity_dc

Spider

Don't blame me, I'm doin' my part.

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"Love never dies." The Beatles

Big

I seem to be leveling off as well near 300.

sgallan

I've noticed an increasing number of 103's the past couple of years.

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I am 48, bald, ugly, and don't own a single cool thing. Kids like me though.

Sean

You can't force people to exercise or stop going to McDonald's. If somebody wants to sit around and wait for Richard Simmons to tear off the side of their house to get them outside, that's their choice.

matclone

Yeah, but that's only one part of the picture. It's really much larger than individual willpower (especially with respect to children).

Sean

Agreed.

ctc

The school lunch menu is absolutely horrid. In Texas, the phys ed classes are a joke. Schools have sold their souls to Dr Pepper, Coke, Pepsi, Mars, Freeto Lay, etc.

LkwdSteve

Unbidden comes to mind Hitler and his strategy for a healthy youth population to service the Third Reich. He achieved it because he was able to order it. The big problem was he considered his young a potential war weapon and that's what he forged. I remember Shirer's incredible description of viewing dead soldiers from the inital assualt across Belgium and France and contrasting how healthy the dead (irony intended!) Germans looked versus the dead British counterparts.

The lesson?

Beware the national leader that seeks to radically upgrade the health of the youth!

BonnieJ2

Here's some good news. Starting next year at our high school, phys ed classes will be used as any other class in compiling the students GPA. They said that too many otherwise good students weren't taking their physical health seriously because the grade didn't count in their GPA anyway.

Freshmen take basic intro to every sport and activity. Sophomores take one semester of general PE and one semester of Health. As a junior, my son is taking Strength and Conditioning right now and will take Adventure Ed next semester. They do rock climbing, canoeing, etc. and then go camping along the Mississippi river in May.

Now if we could only get them to establish a good intramural program...

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