The Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee held a May 21 hearing to discuss the growing problem of child obesity. Sen. Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) chaired the hearing. “Obesity has reached epidemic proportions and has become a major public health problem in our country,” he said, adding that the “percentage of overweight children has nearly doubled from 7 percent to 13 percent, while the percentage of overweight adolescents has almost tripled from 5 percent to 14 percent over the past two decades.”
Sen. Bill Frist (R-TN) agreed about the urgency of the situation, saying, “We must address a problem that has now reached epidemic proportions.”
The committee heard testimony from Dr. William Dietz of the Division of Nutrition and Physical Activity at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), who discussed the impact of the obesity epidemic on other diseases. “Although type 2 diabetes was virtually unknown in children and adolescents 10 years ago, it now accounts for almost 50 percent of new cases of diabetes in some communities,” he said. Additionally, “Recent estimates suggest that obesity accounts for 300,000 deaths annually, second only to tobacco-related deaths.”
To address this epidemic, the CDC has provided funding to 12 states to develop programs to prevent and reduce obesity. “Our support permits states to develop and test nutrition and physical activity interventions to prevent obesity through strategies that focus on policy-level strategies (e.g., states assess and rate child care centers for nutrition and active play) or a supportive environment (e.g., competitive pricing of fruits and vegetables in school cafeterias),” he said. The CDC also funds 20 state educational agencies through the Coordinated School Health Program, which reaches elementary and secondary school students and aims to increase physical activity and improve nutrition.
Dr. Deitz discussed four behavior change strategies that can make a difference: the development of marketing messages designed to increase health behaviors among youth, the promotion of breastfeeding and efforts to increase its duration, reduced television viewing by children, and increased physical activity.
Denise Austin of P.E.4Life detailed the importance of increased physical activity in children and youth. “If we get kids doing physical education 3-5 times a week, we can make a difference,” she said. “P.E.4Life believes that physical education is the beginning of a lifelong learning process in which schools can play a central role in teaching our children how to live as active, responsible, and healthy adults.”
Dr. Sally M. Davis of the Center for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention at the University of New Mexico discussed several programs the center was implementing throughout New Mexico. One such program, Pathways to Health, serves the schools and communities located in seven Indian Nations. The program has four components: a classroom curriculum, family activities, physical activity, and school food service. “Pathways was successful in increasing children’s knowledge about nutrition, physical activity, and health in general and positively affecting their nutrition and physical activity behaviors,” stated Dr. Davis.
Dr. Kelly D. Brownell of the Yale Center for Eating and Weight Disorders told the committee that the provision of fast food and soft drinks in the schools contributes to the problem. She advised the committee to consider ways to improve the school lunch program and eliminate vending machines in schools.
Lisa Katic of the Grocery Manufacturers of America testified that the issue of obesity is “about calories in versus calories out,” adding, “Identifying the extra calories that might be contributing to an adolescent being overweight or obese will probably be more effective in changing his or her diet than portraying individual foods as good or bad.”
Sens. Bingaman, Frist, and Christopher Dodd (D-CT) are currently developing legislation, the Improved Nutrition and Physical Activity Act (IMPACT), which would address obesity prevention and treatment, promote improved nutrition, and increase physical activity in schools and communities.
