Super-size-it suicide

"Nearly two out of three Americans are overweight or obese, a 50% increase from just a decade ago.... More than 400,000 Americans will die this year from causes related to obesity, which is poised to overtake smoking as the leading cause of preventable death.... "

NO SINGLE INDIVIDUAL or group can go it alone when it comes to an effective, coordinated response to obesity. Each of us has a vital and unique role to play in battling this epidemic. It is a fight that Pres. George W. Bush personally believes in and supports through his Healthier US initiative, which is based on four pillars: good nutrition, physical activity, preventive health screenings, and avoiding risky behaviors.

By now, we all are well aware that the situation has reached crisis proportions, and every new statistic lends additional urgency to our efforts. I am especially concerned for our children, because once young people are overweight, the battle is harder to fight. It is more likely that an overweight child will become an overweight or obese adult.

Nearly two out of three Americans are overweight or obese, a 50% increase from just a decade ago. Among children, about one in six is overweight. For some minority groups, those numbers are even higher. For example, in Hispanic children, about one in four boys and one in five girls are overweight. More than 400,000 Americans will die this year from causes related to obesity, which is poised to overtake smoking as the leading cause of preventable death in this country.

Obesity does not strike with the sudden and life-threatening urgency of a heart attack or stroke. It is a major risk factor for the conditions that cause them. Obesity is not diagnosed in a life-altering moment of truth like cancer. Yet, it is linked to the increased incidence of many types of cancer. Obesity is not generally thought of as a condition that requires daily medications, such as diabetes or arthritis, yet it strongly correlates to those and other chronic medical conditions. Moreover, there are disturbing and increasing reports of children who have become amputees because of complications from diabetes. In fact, obesity even is changing our language. What used to be known as "adult-onset diabetes" now most often is referred to as Type II diabetes, because so many overweight children currently suffer from it.

In a grim way, obesity also is a growth industry, as products such as wider seats in theaters, stadiums, and cars, the booming diet business, and even oversized caskets are catering to larger customers.

In strictly financial terms, obesity costs us about $125,000,000,000 a year, mostly from higher medical bills. A study released by Emory University reports that more than one-quarter of the increase in health care spending over the past 15 years is due to obesity. As a nation, we all bear these costs--financial, physical, and emotional. The President launched HealthierUS in 2001 to focus attention on the problem, and the Department of Agriculture has incorporated the initiative into its programs.

In 2003, USDA's National Agriculture Research Extension Education and Economics Advisory Board made several recommendations on how the agency could increase focus on obesity prevention. The Board recommended that USDA take the lead among Federal agencies in developing food- and exercise-based strategies for obesity prevention, and that it should coordinate with other government departments toward a national prevention effort.

The persistence and growth in obesity demonstrates the limits of our understanding and the need to learn more through research, and to apply the knowledge gained through practical solutions. In 2004, at its annual Outlook Forum, USDA, which usually focuses on issues concerning production agriculture at this event, instead directed its attention to issues of nutrition and a healthy food supply. Since this national concern is related directly to food consumption, both in the short and the long term, production agriculture indeed is affected after all.

USDA uniquely is positioned to play a major role in better understanding how to prevent obesity. The Agriculture Department's six human nutrition research centers are doing important work on obesity-related issues, such as the effects of different nutrients on metabolism and exercise. Many of these centers are partnering with universities to conduct research that is targeted to specific populations, such as children and the elderly.

To underline the importance of science to nutrition, a nutrition, food safety and quality group was added to the three national program groups of USDA's Agricultural Research Service. Science and research also are playing a greater role than ever in the process of updating the dietary guidelines for Americans, which are issued every five years in partnership with the Department of Health and Human Services. This is the first time the advisory committee has used an evidence-based approach to reviewing research for the updates, so that the recently issued recommendations were made on a preponderance of research, not just one study.