Surgeon General: Obesity 'Terror Within'

[quax]

Surgeon General: Obesity 'Terror Within'

By KATRINA A. JACKSON Associated Press Writer
© 2006 The Associated Press

COLUMBIA, S.C. — America's obesity epidemic will dwarf the threat of terrorism if the nation does not reduce the number of people who are severely overweight, the surgeon general said Wednesday.

"Obesity is the terror within," Richard Carmona said during a lecture at the University of South Carolina. "Unless we do something about it, the magnitude of the dilemma will dwarf 9-11 or any other terrorist attempt."

Obesity rates have tripled over the past 40 years for children and teens, raising their risk of diabetes and other diseases. For the first time, Carmona said, children are being diagnosed with high blood pressure.

"Where will our soldiers and sailors and airmen come from?" he said. "Where will our policemen and firemen come from if the youngsters today are on a trajectory that says they will be obese, laden with cardiovascular disease, increased cancers and a host of other diseases when they reach adulthood?"

Lowering the nation's obesity rate depends on changing behaviors, but too many Americans are health illiterate, meaning they cannot understand medical terms and directions from doctors, Carmona said.

The surgeon general offered few specific solutions but said public policy reforms would not be helpful in curbing obesity, explaining that common-sense health decisions cannot be legislated.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/health/3695133.html

[mrfreddy]

Surgeon General: Obesity 'Terror Within'



"Obesity is the terror within," Richard Carmona said during a lecture at the University of South Carolina. "Unless we do something about it, the magnitude of the dilemma will dwarf 9-11 or any other terrorist attempt."



as someone who lives and works near the WTC and who lost a friend that day, I am stunned at the stupidity of this statement. how can you compare a health crisis, serious and enormous as it may be, to muslim extremist flying airplanes into skyscrapers? what the hell is wrong with this person? oh yeah, probably a republican... :D

[LC FP]

the magnitude of the dilemma will dwarf 9-11 or any other terrorist attempt."
I don't think this quote makes him a republican, and I don't think it's stupid. We're talking magnitude, not drama. Terrorists will never kill as many of us as our diet will.

The surgeon general offered few specific solutions but said public policy reforms would not be helpful in curbing obesity, explaining that common-sense health decisions cannot be legislated
I think this is the one. Policy reforms (a lot during the Reagan years) have largely caused obesity, and new ones may help reduce it. It's true you can't legislate common sense, but sometimes you have to take the gun out of the hand of the baby.

[quax]

Policy reforms (a lot during the Reagan years) have largely caused obesity.

What reforms do you mean?

[LC_Dave]

Is obesity the problem, or what is causing obesity ?




ie. carbs in refined junk food

[mrfreddy]

I don't think this quote makes him a republican, and I don't think it's stupid. We're talking magnitude, not drama. Terrorists will never kill as many of us as our diet will.



I was kidding with that republican jibe... amd of course I understand he was talking about magnitude, but I still think his comparison to 9/11 is stupid and irksome and cheap.

[betnich]

More Scaremongering... give our ports to Dubai, but don't give up fat police nagging...

:-(

[LC FP]

What reforms do you mean?

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?t=49803

I mean the policies such as those described by Gary Taubes in the 2002 "What if it's all been a big fat lie?" article. George McGovern would be just as responsible at that time. Also in Marcia Angell's book "The Truth about the Drug Companies" a lot of legislation in those years weakened the FDA and other watchdog agencies and gave food manufacturers free rein to do their thing.

I, too, don't think this is a republican plot. It's a political plot with much blame on both parties.

[Nancy LC]

You know, since the Dr. Koop and the woman who followed him and made suggestions that so terribly shocked America, I haven't heard a peep about the Surgeon General on anything. I totally forgot there was such a position.

[cindie]

Shape Up America! is a non-profit national initiative to raise awareness of the importance of healthy eating and increased physical activity for weight management and disease prevention. Founded by former U.S. Surgeon C. Everett Koop in 1994, Shape Up America! relies on a broad coalition of industry, medical, health, nutrition and physical fitness experts to develop and communicate information to the public and to health care professionals. It has three broad objectives: promote a new understanding by Americans of the health importance of achieving and maintaining a healthy weight and increasing physical activity; provide science-based information on the assessment and treatment of obesity; and increase cooperation among national and community organizations committed to advancing healthy weight and increased physical activity as major public health priorities. The Shape Up America! website--www.shapeup.org--is designed to communicate with the public, health care professionals, educators and the media.

[cindie]

"Too bad, America didn't shape up."

[cindie]

You know, since the Dr. Koop and the woman who followed him and made suggestions that so terribly shocked America, I haven't heard a peep about the Surgeon General on anything. I totally forgot there was such a position.


You can now see Dr. Koop on the Emergency Resonse commercial....