Issue 5-November 16, 2009
Archived Issues

Dear Colleagues,

The extensive media coverage on swine flu seems to have crowded out news about an even more lethal epidemic – obesity.  While the most recent high-end estimate of mortality due to the H1N1 virus is striking (6,100 deaths for the period between April and mid-October of 2009), it is dwarfed by the number of deaths due to poor diet and physical activity, which was recently estimated at 400,000 per year. The other big health news story – health care reform – has largely missed a key point.  Prevention efforts are needed to address this obesity problem if there is ever to be a hope of reducing health care costs.

Report cover image provided by IOM and NRC.

I recently had the privilege of serving on the Institute of Medicine’s panel on Local Government Actions to Prevent Childhood Obesity. Charged with expanding upon two previous IOM panels citing potential of local government efforts to combat childhood obesity, this panel worked to produce a practical policy guide for local officials...Continued 

Many school personnel score low grades on diet
November 16, 2009

Elementary school personnel in Jefferson Parish have poor diets and high rates of overweight and obesity, according to results from the ACTION Worksite Wellness Trial, a study led by Dr. Larry Webber, who is affiliated with the Prevention Research Center at Tulane University.

Roughly 6.7 million school personnel across the nation are responsible for educating children about healthy habits, but little is known about whether these role models practice the behaviors they teach. The health of school employees impacts students’ health and the educational environment, and yet limited evidence-based, health promotion programs for school staff exist...Continued

Radio contest gives New Orleans area youth a chance to "Be Heard" on physical activity
November 16, 2009

Recognizing the power of peer advice, the Prevention Research Center (PRC) at Tulane University launched a radio contest to pass the mike from adults to youth to give them a chance to “Be Heard” on the topic of physical activity.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, only 25.6 percent of high school girls and 43.7 percent of high school boys report getting at least 60 minutes of physical activity a day...Continued 

In the news...

"Soft Drink Manufacturers Lobby Against Soda Tax"
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
11.13.09

"Another cause of obesity: The bacteria in your gut?"
Time
Alice Park
11.12.09

"New Estimate: Excess Body Fat Alone Causes 100,000 Cancers in U.S. Each Year"
Media-Newswire American Institute for Cancer Research
11.11.09

"Lack of Exercise May Not Explain Teen Obesity"
ABC News
11.10.09

"Obama’s chef and policy wonk"
Mother Nature Network E.B. Solomont
11.5.09

"Can exercise keep a spring in our step longer"
Pennington Biomedical Research Center
Glen Duncan
11.4.09

"Pentagon: A third of U.S. youth are too fat, sickly to serve"
USA Today
11.4.09

"U.S. Cities Make Efforts to Increase Availability of Nutritious Foods"
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
11.3.09

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