Obesity rates in children plummet, with FLOTUS Michelle Obama the leading edge in this charge since she and her husband came to Washington.
EVEN BEFORE First Lady Michelle Obama started her Let’s Move! campaign, we knew that obesity was a problem, particularly in children. However, with Mrs. Obama’s Let’s Move! presence and enlisting the help of celebrities, there is little doubt what she’s done has been like a jet fuel pack on our culture.
Fighting obesity in children matters and Michelle Obama has led this charge since she and her husband came to Washington. People just don’t appreciate how embedding in children good habits in diet and exercise can impact their lives long term.
The latest news is extraordinary.
In fact, if we could get adults trained more on what we eat and how much, making exercise a daily regimen as well, it could also help our health care costs. Much of what goes wrong with us as adults, minus heredity we must heed, is in our own control. Our diet, exercise, managing stress level, all of it is in our own control.
From the New York Times:
Federal health authorities on Tuesday reported a 43 percent drop in the obesity rate among 2- to 5-year-old children over the past decade, the first broad decline in an epidemic that often leads to lifelong struggles with weight and higher risks for cancer, heart disease and stroke.
The drop emerged from a major federal health survey that experts say is the gold standard for evidence on what Americans weigh. The trend came as a welcome surprise to researchers. New evidence has shown that obesity takes hold young: Children who are overweight or obese at 3 to 5 years old are five times as likely to be overweight or obese as adults.
FLOTUS’ Let’s Move campaign helps kids make good food choices, fighting obesity in a fun way.
I personally believe that the poor shape the average citizen is in, especially with children, is a serious National Security issue.
Here is the link to the Will Farrell video http://tinyurl.com/ml7fnvl
My advice on diet and exercise – Pay attention to what you eat. Pay attention to what you buy at the store. I feel that once you are aware of what you are eating and not eating, you will make better choices. A person who does not care about their health will not bother paying attention.
The best exercise is walking. Walking several times a day, even 20 minutes at a time, is going to do wonders for a person who is out of shape. Swimming is the next thing. It is not always possible for every person to go swimming, I know.
Just doing bare minimum exercises a few times a day plus stretching will provide a person with tremendous positive benefits. Including good, nutritious food and removing bad food with little or no nutritional value will also provide wonderful benefits.
There are more obese people than starving people. I think the Dalai Lama said something like “A person will sacrifice all of their health to accumulate wealth, just to spend their wealth trying to get back their health.”
Today’s Washington Post also credits LetsMove..gov as one of six reason why the young child obesity rate has lowered.
“A number of national initiatives have promoted healthy eating among children, such as first lady Michelle Obama’s “Let’s Move” initiative and reports from a wide range of groups such as the American Public Health Association and American Academy of Pediatrics”
http://tinyurl.com/mvpuycj
Hey mjsmith.
What you eat matters, as do portions. Eating your biggest meal at lunch does, too, if you can swing it.
Exercise is key. Most people can’t walk “several times a day,” and it’s good exercise as long as you walk quickly. You’ve got to get your heart rate up, not just amble.
Vigorous exercise is best.
Yep, Let’s Move has been historic.
A big lunch is great. The problem I have is that I get so tired after eating a large lunch. I tried to make the case to allow naps at my work. It didn’t work out.