Obama to US: A Salad Wouldn't Kill You

Prez battles for prevention, sets fit example
By Matt Cantor,  Newser Staff
Posted Jun 10, 2009 1:20 PM CDT
Obama to US: A Salad Wouldn't Kill You
First lady Michelle Obama, left, helps plant a vegetable garden at Bancroft Elementary School in Washington, Friday, May 29, 2009.   (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

President Obama is on a mission for a fitter America, Politico reports: he has given health department jobs to warriors against trans fats and smoking, and he wants a health care plan that keeps Americans from getting sick in the first place, with obesity screenings and an emphasis on exercise. For health advocates, it’s “not a breath of fresh air. It is a tornado,” says one.

Obama’s stimulus package contained $650 million for prevention programs; he had executives to the White House to extol the money-saving virtues of such plans. And the First Couple is practicing what the president preaches with morning workouts and Michelle’s vegetable garden. But some fear the president could overstep his healthy-eating bounds: “Get ready, because the ‘nanny state on steroids’ is going national,’” says one group.
(More public health stories.)

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