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The Obesity Epidemic

Started by C Miller; Last updated Feb 24, 08 12:51 PM CST by Imperator | View history

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The Obesity Epidemic

Will America ever get off of the couch and into shape?

Stories

Stories 1 - 20 of 107

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July 2008
- Deep South Leads in Obesity
  
  newser | CDC: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention | Jul 18, 08 7:13 AM CDT
  
  The South has the nation's largest percentage of obese residents, a new survey by the Centers for Disease Control finds, with 30% of adults in Mississippi, Alabama and Tennessee qualifying as obese. Even in Colorado, the state with the best fat stats, 19% of the populace is obese. More »
- NYC Not Eating Up Calorie-Count Law
  
  newser | MSNBC | Jul 17, 08 6:28 PM CDT
  
  As chain restaurants waddle their way toward compliance with a New York City law that requires them to post the calorie counts of food, the numbers behind the items have diners grappling with some unappetizing knowledge, MSNBC reports. The restaurant skinny is turning out to be anything but, from 630-calorie Dunkin' Donuts muffins to a pecan-crusted chicken salad at TGI Friday's, whose 1,360 calories trumped a burger and fries on the same menu. More »
- Kids Dump Exercise by Their Teens
  
  newser | HealthDay News | Jul 16, 08 9:59 AM CDT
  
  American children stop getting enough exercise by the time they reach their teens, according to a new study. Researchers tracked more than 1,000 children and discovered that those who averaged three hours of exercise a day at age 9 barely managed 30 minutes of physical activity at 15, reports HealthDay. A lack of exercise is linked to childhood obesity. Experts recommend children get at least an hour a day of moderate to vigorous activity. More »
- California Set to Ban Trans Fat
  
  newser | Sacramento Bee | Jul 15, 08 8:01 AM CDT
  
  The California legislature yesterday passed a bill banning all trans fats in restaurants and bakeries by 2011. It's now awaiting the signature of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who hasn't indicated whether he supports such an action. If passed, the new law would make California the first state to enact such a ban. A similar measure was implemented earlier this month in New York City. More »
- Docs Push Cholesterol Tests for Kids
  
  newser | New York Times | Jul 7, 08 6:49 AM CDT
  
  With 30% of US children overweight, pediatricians are now recommending cholesterol screenings for kids as young as 2, and the use of cholesterol-fighting drugs in youngsters 8 and up, in order to stave off diabetes and early heart attacks. Some 30%-60% of children with high cholesterol aren’t being treated, the American Academy of Pediatrics says, and those with family histories of cardiovascular problems should be screened and treated. More »
- Hot Dog! Duo Shoots for Title Tomorrow
  
  newser | Village Voice | Jul 3, 08 8:00 PM CDT
  
  With Takeru Kobayashi’s hot-dog hegemony in doubt at tomorrow's Coney Island throwdown, the Village Voice accompanies a pair of contenders as they train for the event. Roommates Crazy Legs Conti and Tim Janus hit an all-you-can-eat sushi bar in preparation for Nathan's July 4th institution, the 10-minute contest described by an organizer as "the Master’s of competitive eating." More »
- We Are What Our Moms Ate
  
  newser | Guardian (UK) | Jul 1, 08 9:18 AM CDT
  
  Long-term health problems such as obesity, diabetes, and heart disease may begin in the womb with mothers who eat junk food during pregnancy, the Guardian reports. A new study suggests expectant mothers who eat unhealthy diets not only risk the health of their newborns, but may set the child up for a lifetime of health problems. More »
June 2008
- Surgery Cuts Down Obesity Without a Knife
  
  newser | Boston Globe | Jun 28, 08 5:54 PM CDT
  
  A Boston hospital has successfully performed a first-of-its-kind obesity surgery that doesn’t require a scalpel. The promising treatment involves passing a tube through the patient’s throat, which bypasses the need to cut the patient—and reduces the risk of infections, bleeding, and scarring. “This is less invasive, and patients would have a very quick recovery,” one researcher said. More »
- Oz Tops US As World's Fattest
  
  newser | Age (Aust.) | Jun 20, 08 5:02 PM CDT
  
  Australia is the fattest nation in the world, the Age reports. A new study says body-mass index measurements pegs 4 million people—26% of the nation's population—as obese, narrowly beating the US, where 25% are obese. An additional 5 million Aussies are classified as overweight—with the usual suspects of more fast food and less exercise behind the epidemic. More »
- No-Longer-Fat Lady Sings Part She Was Denied
  
  newser | New York Times | Jun 11, 08 8:34 AM CDT
  
  In 2004 Deborah Voigt, one of the world's most gifted sopranos, was dismissed from a London production of Ariadne auf Naxos for being too fat to fit in the little black dress that the director insisted was integral to the production. On Monday Voigt, who has gone from a size 30 to a 14 after weight-reduction surgery, has what the New York Times is calling a "second date" with that black dress: starring in the same production of Ariadne. More »
- Airlines Mull Weighing Passengers
  
  newser | Bloomberg | Jun 3, 08 4:14 PM CDT
  
  Desperate airliners are doing everything to cut fuel costs, scaling back on water and snacks—and adding a fee for overweight passengers could be next, analysts tell Bloomberg. "Nothing is beyond their imagination," one says of CEOs. "They have already begun to think exotically." Fuel costs, nearly triple since 2000, account for as much as 40% of operating expenses. More »
- Your Body Wants You to Stay Fat
  
  newser | Los Angeles Times | Jun 3, 08 12:34 PM CDT
  
  Your body doesn't want you to lose weight, scientists say, and makes it tough to keep off pounds lost. Scientists tell the Los Angeles Times that brain and hormone cues increase post-diet as natural processes try to get that old figure back. And while research into the heavy issues is still ongoing, exercise and medications are seen to help. More »
- Want a Skinny Kid? Don't Tell Her She's Fat
  
  newser | Minneapolis Star Tribune | Jun 2, 08 4:18 PM CDT
  
  A new study of obese teens has produced a counterintuitive indication: Parents should under no circumstances tell pudgy youngsters to diet, the Minneapolis Star-Tribune reports. A group of teens correctly identified by parents as overweight and encouraged to diet were more likely to still be chunky 5 years later than was a group with clueless parents who took no action. More »
May 2008
- Childhood Obesity Rate Levels Off
  
  newser | Washington Post | May 27, 08 6:09 PM CDT
  
  The rate of childhood obesity appears to have peaked, providing the first "glimmer of hope" on the problem in decades, federal researchers say. About 15% of kids ages 2 to 19 are obese, a slight decrease from the percentage in 1999, the Washington Post reports. It's the first time since the 1980s that the percentage has not gone up, though researchers cautioned that far too many kids face serious health risks because of their weight. More »
- Diet Duchess Leaves Sour Taste
  
  newser | Spiked | May 23, 08 4:01 PM CDT
  
  Watching Duchess of York Sarah Ferguson lecture some of Britain’s poorest—and hungriest—on the virtues of healthy eating on the UK show " The Duchess of Hull " may turn stomachs, but it's just the latest offering from a lengthy menu of a la carte snobbery perpetuated by today’s TV food and makeover shows, argues Rob Lyons in his Spiked column. More »
- Indiana Jones & Raiders of the Fat Fridge
  
  newser | Salon | May 21, 08 5:21 AM CDT
  
  Indiana Jones has a new enemy. Pediatrician Rahul Parikh is irritated about Indy's marketing tie-ins to high-calorie foods like Burger King's "Indy Double Whopper" and Snicker's "Adventure Bar." Parikh has been enjoying the films of George Lucas and Steven Spielberg for decades, but he's also watching kids grow obese, thanks in part to fatty food marketing, he writes in Salon. More »
- Organic Formula Stirs Worries About Sugar
  
  newser | New York Times | May 19, 08 11:40 AM CDT
  
  Although it controls more than a third of the organic baby formula market, Similac Organic also carries a less coveted distinction: It is the only brand in the category that contains cane sugar, or sucrose. The company says its is FDA approved, but many parents and doctors worry about starting babies on the extra-sweet formula, the New York Times reports. More »
- This Is 'Playing.' This Is 'Outside.'
  
  newser | Los Angeles Times | May 16, 08 5:48 PM CDT
  
  Using the flap over a New York 9-year-old allowed to find his own way home from Bloomingdale's as an example of a sea change, Rosa Brooks, writing in the Los Angeles Times, reminds us that allowing children to be outside on their own used to be the norm. "'Play,' incidentally, is a mysterious activity children engage in when not compelled to spend every hour under adult supervision," she writes. More »
- Erratic Sleepers Have More Health Problems: Study
  
  newser | Associated Press | May 7, 08 4:54 PM CDT
  
  Irregular sleep habits increase the likelihood of obesity and smoking, the AP reports. The CDC surveyed 87,000 Americans over 2 years and found that individuals who sleep fewer than 6 hours a night or more than 9 were 5% to 10% more likely to smoke and 4% to 11% more likely to be obese than those who slept 6 to 9 hours. More »
- Hormone Makes Food More Appetizing
  
  newser | LiveScience | May 7, 08 3:35 PM CDT
  
  What makes people eat more than their bodies need? It might have a lot to do with the hormone ghrelin, a new study at McGill University finds. The chemical tells the brain to find food more appealing, and causes hunger, LiveScience reports. Work has already started on ghrelin-blocking drugs, but the probability of severe effects on mood is a significant hurdle. More »

Stories 1 - 20 of 107

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Images (6)
Videos (3)

Obesity Epidemic Hits California (Getty Images)

Shaye Marshall weighs in as nutritionalist Star Gantz makes notes before Shaye sees Dr. Joan Griffith at the University of Kentucky Chandler Medical Center in Lexington, Kentucky, on Monday, July 26, (KRT Photos)

USA. New York. San Gennaro festival in Little Italy. (SCF9765) (Magnum Photos)

G.B. ENGLAND. Lacock. 1988. (LON45588) (Magnum Photos)

US NEWS MED-OBESITY-INFERT TB (KRT Photos)

Students at Piedmont Elementary eat lunch at school Tuesday, May 1, 2007, in Charleston, W.Va. Many school administrators are sneaking nutrition into school lunches, in an effort to combat the nation's... (Associated Press)

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

Obesity (NationalGeographic (YouTube))

Childhood Obesity Epidemic (wcvbtv (YouTube))

MeMe Roth- NAAO- Child Obesity Child Abuse- CNN Paula Zahn (MeMeRoth (YouTube))

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Related Threads

Diet & Exercise • Public Health • Parenting • Diabetes • Heart Health • Fast Food Chains • Medical Breakthroughs • Angioplasty • Baseball • Drug Companies

Background

obesity
World Encyclopedia

obesity Condition of being overweight, generally defined as weighing 20% or more above the recommended norm for the person's sex, ...

» Read more about obesity at Encyclopedia.com

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