More Blacks Are Fatter Than Blacks

16 Jul 2009 15:43 Africa/Lagos

New Obesity Data Shows Blacks Have the Highest Rates of Obesity

Embargoed for Thursday, July 16, 2009, at 12 p.m. ET


Blacks had 51 percent higher prevalence of obesity, and Hispanics had 21 percent higher obesity prevalence compared with whites, according to researchers with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.


Greater prevalences of obesity for blacks and whites were found in the South and Midwest than in the West and Northeast. Hispanics in the Northeast had lower obesity prevalence than Hispanics in the Midwest, South or West. The study, in CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, examined data from 2006-2008.


"This study highlights that in the United States, blacks and Hispanics are disproportionately affected by obesity,'' said Dr. William H. Dietz, Director of CDC's Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity, "If we have any hope of stemming the rise in obesity, we must intensify our efforts to create an environment for healthy living in these communities."


The study uses data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS), of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. BRFSS is an ongoing, state-based, random-digit-dialed telephone survey of the U.S. civilian, noninstitutionalized population aged 18 years and older.


The study found that in 40 states, obesity prevalence among blacks was 30 percent or more. In five of those states, Alabama, Maine, Mississippi, Ohio, and Oregon, obesity prevalence among blacks was 40 percent or greater.


For blacks, the prevalence of obesity ranged from 23 percent to 45.1 percent among all states and the District of Columbia; among Hispanics in 50 states and DC, the prevalence of obesity ranged from 21 percent to 36.7 percent, with 11 states having an obesity prevalence of 30 percent or higher. Among whites in 50 states and the District of Columbia, the prevalence of obesity ranged from 9 percent to 30.2 percent, with only West Virginia having a prevalence of 30 percent or more.


"We know that racial and ethnic differences in obesity prevalence are likely due to both individual behaviors, as well as differences in the physical and social environment,'' said Liping Pan, M.D., M.P.H., lead author and epidemiologist. "We need a combination of policy and environmental changes that can create opportunities for healthier living."


For this study analysis, CDC analyzed the 2006 2008 BRFSS data. For more information on obesity trends, tables, including an animated map, visit http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/data/trends.html. To learn more about CDC's efforts in the fight against obesity or for more information about nutrition, physical activity, and maintaining a healthy weight, visit http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpao.


CONTACT: CDC Division of Media Relations, +1-404-639-3286


/PRNewswire-USNewswire -- July 16/


Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Web Site: http://www.cdc.gov/


Releases displayed in Africa/Lagos time
16 Jul 2009
19:57
Haydenfilms 4.0 Online Film Festival Awards Ceremony Being Held During Aug. 2009 HollyShorts Film Festival in Los Angeles
19:38
Coming Clean About The Cleaner - Phoenix House's Chief Clinical Officer David Deitch on Intervention, and the Recovery Process That Follows
19:10
'Single Ladies' Dance Contest at Tryst Nightclub
18:56
Lionsgate Shines With 22 Emmy(R) Award Nominations for Its Acclaimed Series MAD MEN and WEEDS
18:42
Atlanta Reels in First $100,000 Fantasy Fishing Prize Winner as Georgia Prepares to Host $2.5 Million Forrest Wood Cup in 2010
18:36
Cohen & Grigsby Attorneys Recognized on Florida Super Lawyers and Rising Stars Lists
18:03
Rentrak Retail Essentials and Home Video Essentials Announces Top DVD Sales and Rentals for Week Ending July 12, 2009
17:44
National Launch of Crazy Girls Cafe Announced
17:36
HYPE UniverCity Online Gives $1 Million to Students in Beta Scholarship Rewards Site Launch
17:27
Antoine Saout (FR) on WSOP Final Table & Helps 51 Players Claim $19,607
17:16
ABC's Extreme Makeover: Home Edition Renews Winning Brands Cleaning Products
17:15
Former Utah Governor to Talk About Her Battle With PF on ABC 4 Salt Lake City, July 22nd
17:09
Thousands Expected to Attend the 'Bakugan Ultimate Battle Tour' This Weekend in L.A.
17:01
DISH Network Reaches Agreement With 46 States
17:00
Officially Doing Business As 'TD Garden'
17:00
Verizon Wireless Delivers Slacker Radio to BlackBerry Storm Smartphones
17:00
Willie Nelson and Farm Aid Bringing Music Festival to St. Louis
16:54
Largest Gift in History of Reed College and National Jewish Health Received from Author David Eddings
16:47
Northwestern Memorial Among America's Best Hospitals in 11 Clinical Specialties According to U.S. News' 2009 Rankings
16:42
Nimbuzz liebt Apple

American Lawmakers To Pass Law Against Obesity

Photo Credit: Freaking News.Com

As the fears of economic depression increase in America, the critical situation could be the answer to check the expanding waistlines of Americans and in fact American lawmakers are considering Legislation to Reduce Obesity in the Workplace. You think I am joking? Well, read the following report.

7 Oct 2008 15:00 Africa/Lagos

Lawmakers Consider Legislation to Reduce Obesity in the Workplace

Special legislative task force to discuss employer role in weight management

SAN JOSE, Calif., Oct. 7 /PRNewswire/ -- As American waistlines expand, there's little surprise that this public health issue poses a challenge to the nation's employers. In some states, including New York and California, government regulators are stepping in to urge businesses to take action.


A special meeting of the California Legislative Task Force on Diabetes and Obesity has been scheduled for Wednesday, October 8, at the Johnson & Johnson Diabetes Institute in Milpitas, Calif. At this hearing, which will be chaired by California State Assemblyman Joe Coto, experts will testify about the benefits of workplace wellness programs, the role of the employer and the economic impact of this serious public health threat. Task Force members will incorporate this testimony into their discussion and use it as a basis for potential legislation in California.


"The biotechnology industry proudly supports and commends the Legislative Diabetes and Obesity Task Force in their efforts to combat this epidemic," said Joe Panetta, President and CEO of BIOCOM, the association for the Southern California life science community. "The life science industry has been at the forefront in improving and sustaining the health of our workforce through workplace wellness programs. We understand that it makes good business sense and creates a more productive workforce."


American workers want help from their employers to lose weight according to a 2007 national survey of 500 members of the Synovate Global Opinion Panel (SGOP) who are overweight and work full-time outside of the home. Two out of three respondents to this survey report that they are interested in employer-sponsored weight control programs. But less than half (44 percent) of overweight employees have access to these types of programs.


Johnson & Johnson has one of the first corporate wellness models that dates back nearly 30 years. "We hope that our example can help other employers evolve beyond flu shots and blood pressure screenings to truly have a positive influence on the well being of the people who work for them," said Susan Tierman, M.D., Medical Director of North America for Johnson & Johnson.


Overweight and obesity is associated with an increased cost of healthcare, lost work days, absenteeism, low productivity and high turnover rates in the workplace. In California alone, the annual cost of medical care attributable to obesity is estimated to be nearly $7.7 billion(1) in a state where more half of all adults (55.9 percent) are either overweight or obese.(2)


"It is important for employers to offer programs with realistic end goals in mind -- specifically that modest, gradual weight loss is best. These types of programs are the best way to help reduce the financial impact of increased health care costs -- and should be a part of every business's employee wellness program," said MRC Greenwood, Ph.D., an obesity expert and co-chair of the Reality Coalition, a consumer advocacy organization aimed at getting consumers to adopt healthy, realistic approaches to weight loss that include diet, exercise, and evidence-based medicine and programs.


About Overweight and Obesity


Currently, approximately 65 percent of U.S. adults are overweight or obese, according to the National Institutes of Health. Research suggests that overweight individuals appear to be on the pathway to obesity.(3,4) Overweight and obesity are associated with an increased risk of developing health problems such as hypertension, type 2 diabetes and heart disease.(5) Factors that can contribute to overweight include an abundance of high-calorie foods, low levels of physical activity, behavior, environment, and genetics.(6) Multiple studies have shown that a modest reduction in weight improves health outcomes significantly in overweight or obese patients.(7,8)


About the Reality Coalition


The Reality Coalition is a group of esteemed experts on obesity, nutrition, diabetes and healthcare policy who share the common goal of advancing an agenda for realistic approaches to weight loss to achieve improved public health.


The Reality Initiative was launched in 2006 and is supported by an educational grant from GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare. The Coalition developed a white paper entitled Help Not Hype: Getting Real About Weight Loss (published in Obesity Management, February 2007), which was introduced in partnership with the Federal Trade Commission at NAASO, The Obesity Society annual meeting in October 2006. Committed to changing the national weight loss dialogue and broadening its sponsorship base, the Coalition is expanding its efforts in 2007 to invite business leaders, private, public, professional and non-profit groups to partner in our work.


Reality Coalition Members include co-chairs Louis J. Aronne, MD, Dr. George L. Blackburn, MD, PhD, and MRC Greenwood, PhD; Arthur Frank, MD, Obesity Specialist; Gary Foster, PhD, Behavioral Psychologist; Barbara Moore, PhD, Nutritionist; Judith Stern, ScD, Nutritionist; Anne Wolf, MS, RD, Dietitian; Madelyn Fernstrom, PhD, CNS, Nutritionist; Johanna Dwyer, PhD, Nutritionist; Susan Cummings, RD, Dietitian; Jeremy Nobel, MD, MPH, Public Health Expert; Valentine Burroughs, MD, MBA, Diabetes Expert; Morgan Downey, JD, Obesity Specialist, Shaping America's Health, The Obesity Society, National Consumers League, America On the Move, American Dietetic Association and the American Pharmacists Association.


(1) http://www.healthpolicy.ucla.edu/pubs/files/AdultsObese_FS_120104.pdf
(2) http://www.healthpolicy.ucla.edu/pubs/files/Hlth_CAs_RT_090908.pdf


(3) Flegal KM, Carroll MD, Ogden CL, Johnson CL. Prevalence and trends in obesity among US adults, 1999-2000. JAMA 2002;288:1723-1727.


(4) McTigue KM, Garrett JM, Popkin BM. The natural history of the development of obesity in a cohort of young US adults between 1981-1998. Ann Intern Med 2002;136:857-864.


(5) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: "Overweight and Obesity." http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/obesity/. Accessed 12/22/05.


(6) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Overweight and Obesity: Contributing Factors." http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/obesity/contributing_factors.htm. Accessed 12/22/05.


(7) Hauptman J, Lucas C, Baldrin MN, Collins H, Segal K. "Orlistat in the long-term treatment of obesity in primary care settings." Archives of Family Medicine 9:160-167.


(8) NIH, NHLBI. Clinical guidelines on the identification, evaluation, and treatment of overweight and obesity in adults. HHS, PHS; 1998. p. 29-41.


Source: The Reality Coalition

CONTACT: Dave Schemelia of HealthSTAR Public Relations, +1-212-532-0909,
or cell, +1-609-468-9325, dschemelia@healthstarpr.com

Web Site: http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/obesity

Susan Powter The Politics of Stupid: The Cure for Obesity

15 Apr 2008 18:13 Africa/Lagos



Susan Powter The Politics of Stupid: The Cure for Obesity

NEW YORK, April 15 /PRNewswire/ --

An internationally-known brand name, New York Times best-selling author, and the woman dubbed "the Lenny Bruce of Wellness" by Shape magazine, Susan Powter's "Stop the Insanity" mantra was a self-help sensation in the 1990s. Her personal story of losing over l30 pounds as a single mother of two babies inspired millions and changed the diet and fitness industry forever. Now, recently returned to public life from a ten year self-imposed exile, in her most radical book to date, THE POLITICS OF STUPID: The Cure for Obesity (Atria Books; May 6, 2008), Susan Powter challenges food manufacturers, governments, fitness and diet industries in order to teach women how to find the motivation to alter their lifestyles in search of well-being and weight loss.


(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080415/NYTU138 )


Her unique new "X-change" program works with a powerful associated website at www.susanpowteronline.com. Both start by asking women to change the way they think about eating and exercise: "X-change a high-fat, processed, inactive, nonthinking lifestyle for a far more styling life habit." Forming the core concept of her new method are four words: Consciousness, honesty, behavior, and responsibility. With this as her new mantra, Powter dares women to join her:


-- To trade selflessness for selfishness and take time for themselves and
their health. Just thirty minutes of regular cardio and strength
training six days a week can achieve maximum results.

-- To stop using excuses like childhood issues, willpower problems, baby
weight gain, lack of time, or physical injuries as a reason for being
unfit and overweight.

-- To stop eating junk that isn't food, and demand whole, organic,
naturally low fat foods for themselves and their families.

-- To start living consciously about how our bodies, our health and the
condition of the planet are all connected.

-- To start flexing their combined muscle for change in the $276 billion
dollar food industry.



With the authoritative voice and humor that made Stop the Insanity such a tremendous hit, THE POLITICS OF STUPID is a timely manifesto, one certain to propel Susan Powter back into the public eye and start a new wellness movement. "I said years ago, the most dangerous animal on earth is a pissed-off mother. I speak with women because when a woman gets well, her friends, her community, and eventually the world gets well."


Photo: NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080415/NYTU138
AP Archive: http://photoarchive.ap.org/
AP PhotoExpress Network: PRN23
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
Source: Susan Powter

CONTACT: Erica Gerard for Susan Powter, +1-212-373-6108


Web site: Susan Power Online