This week, first lady Michelle Obama launched a nationwide campaign to fight childhood obesity. The initiative will focus on urging kids to get more exercise and eat balanced meals. Mrs. Obama announced the creation of a new website that will serve as a central resource. The site offers tips for parents, and will emphasize physical activity and more healthful foods in schools.

Mrs. Obama commented on the intent of the initiative in a speech at the White House: "This isn't about trying to turn the clock back to when we were kids, or preparing five-course meals from scratch every night. No one has time for that.

"And it's not about being 100 percent perfect 100 percent of the time. Lord knows, I'm not. There's a place for cookies and ice cream, burgers and fries -- that's part of the fun of childhood. ... It's just about balance. It's about small changes that add up -- like walking to school, replacing soda with water or skim milk, trimming those portion sizes a little."

According to federal data, obesity has tripled among American adolescents and doubled among American children since 1980. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), about 17 percent of children ages 6 to 11 in the U.S. were obese in a study conducted from 2003 to 2006, an increase of 10.5 percent within the past 30 years.

President Obama commented on the implications of childhood obesity for the nation, saying, "[Obesity] is one of the most urgent health issues that we face in this country."

In conjunction with the new campaign, the President signed an executive order directing federal departments to come up with a plan within 90 days on how to make federal nutritional and health data more accessible to the public. The order included the statement: "Without effective intervention, many more children will endure serious illnesses that will put a strain on our healthcare system."

(Source: Bloomberg.com)

Labels: childhood-obesity, nutrition

Posted By: Aspen Education Group