Food Marketing/Ads continue to tempt us. Weight Management can save your life! @CDCObesity @EatRight

Fast Food Restaurants
Continue to Tempt the Nation

Even in today's obese times with public health improvements of putting calories on menus, offering lower fat choices and fresh garden salads and reducing soda sizes - most advertising dollars are still, to this very day, spent on the highest fat, highest calorie, tastiest foods. After all, fat and salt equal flavor to our taste buds and happiness to our brains. 

The problem is control. In light of the recent soda size limitation in NYC, the controversial calorie question seems to be: who should control available high calorie foods - you, or should government step in? This a heated current debate, which we all have an opinion about.

We can debate all we want, but the obesity epidemic is here and now. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, over 78 million U.S. adults and about 12.5 million U.S. children and adolescents were obese in 2009-2010. And, obesity statistics continue to rise.

As a clinical out-patient Dietitian, I am counseling kids who tell me about their experience with chest pain and having to get their first EKG (a test that records electrical activity in the heart). Children tell me they never learned how to run because of their weight. 

Obesity is in the news every day of every week. This week, the news reported again on the increasing incidence of children getting high blood pressure... this is not normal. Pediatric hypertension-related hospitalizations in the U.S. practically doubled, from 12,661 in 1997 to 24,602 in 2006.

We should not lose time in the chit-chat and finger-pointing of who should or should not control the foods we eat. We all must be health warriors before the next unplanned doctors visit is yours.

Weight Management is important now more than any other time in U.S. history. We have to continue working together to improve the diets of all Americans both at home and in schools. Pay close attention and monitor everything you buy, cook, eat and drink. 

Don't be tempted to eat unhealthy foods promoted by advertising and marketing. This includes product positioning to lure you in places that sell food. Often times case stacked end caps (soda, chips, cookies, candy) with low price points are not promoting healthy food choices.

Most studies show individuals who are obese have significantly higher risk of death from all causes, compared with healthy weight individuals (Body Mass Index (BMI) 18.5 to 24.9). Obese individuals with high risks may get weight loss bariatric surgery. Over 100,000 bariatric surgeries are now done each year from only 8,597 procedures in 1993.

Create a winning strategy in your mind on how to limit high fat, high calorie, high sodium foods. Work with a Registered Dietitian if you need help.

Blog post and photo copyright (C) 2012 Wind. All rights reserved. The photo is not to pick on Wendy's, they offer more healthful food choices too. I'm picking on advertising a food that is a weakness for most people - French Fries. A small package of Fries contains 320 calories, 350 mg sodium and 16 grams of total fat, which is NOT a healthy choice.

References: 
Flegal KM, Graubard BI, Williamson DF, et al. Cause-Specific Excess Deaths Associated With Underweight, Overweight, and Obesity. Journal of the American Medical Association. 2007; 298(17):2028–2037.

Livingston EH. The Incidence of Bariatric Surgery Has Plateaued In the U.S; Am J Surg. 2010 September ; 200(3): 378–385. doi:10.1016/j.amjsurg.2009.11.007.

Ogden CL, Carroll MD, Kit BK, Flegal KM. Data Brief Number 82, January 2012. Prevalence of Obesity in the United States, 2009-2010. CDC http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db82.htm. Accessed 9/22/12.  

American Heart Association 6/2012. More hospitalizations, higher charges, for kids with high blood pressure. http://newsroom.heart.org/pr/aha/more-hospitalizations-higher-charges-235126.aspx Accessed 9/22/12.

Related Links
Obesity and Obesity Statistics
Let's Move