RHE-309K
The Role of Government in Preventing Childhood Obesity
Childhood obesity is a serious and growing issue in the United States. Approximately 17 percent of children from ages two to nineteen are obese (Suwanski). Also, according to the Centers for Disease Control and prevention, obesity rates have almost tripled since 1980, and 80 percent of children who are overweight from ages 10 to 15, will be overweight at age 25 (Suwanski). Childhood obesity can lead to serious issues including Type 2 Diabetes, heart disease, hepatitis, and even a decrease in life expectancy up to five years (Hellmich). Dr. Don Neel, Owensboro pediatrician, told the Childhood Obesity Summit that it's easier for him to "cure an illness than to treat obesity" (Suwanski).
It is evident that there needs to be a course of action to deal with childhood obesity, and Michelle Obama is taking initiative with a campaign called Let's Move! According to the website, Let's Move! is " a comprehensive initiative, launched by the First Lady, dedicated to solving the problem of obesity within a generation, so that children born today will grow up healthier and able to pursue their dreams" (Let's Move!). There are five main goals of the Let's Move! campaign that are clearly listed: to create a healthy start for children, to empower parents and caregivers, to provide healthy food in schools, to improve access to healthy foods, and finally to increase physical activity (Let's Move!).
Mrs. Obama has a great amount of support on this campaign from major suppliers of school lunches, The American Academy of Pediatrics, professional athletes, and the media (Stolberg). In February of 2010, suppliers of school lunches like Sodexo, Chartwells Schools Dining Services, and Aramark agreed to reduce "the amount of fat, sugar and salt in their meals over the next five years" (Stolberg). Additionally, professional athletes volunteered to promote Mrs. Obama's message of "60 Minutes of Play a Day," and media companies agreed to broadcast her message (Stolberg). The First Lady's goals are to "reshape the nutritional environment in which children grow up," and she plans to install more sidewalks and put greengrocers in inner cities, among several other efforts (Stolberg).
Although Mrs. Obama has received a tremendous amount of support on her efforts, there is much debate about what needs to be done and whether or not the government has a right to get involved in people's food choices. I have done a significant amount of research on childhood obesity and on Mrs. Obama's efforts, and I completely support her initiatives. However, not everyone supports the "Let's Move" campaign. Among its main critics, is former Alaskan governor and vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin. Palin argues for less government involvement in people's lives, and she feels that the government has no business in telling people what they can and cannot eat. "What she [Michelle Obama] is telling us is she cannot trust parents to make decisions for their own children, for their own families in what we should eat," Palin said on Laura Ingraham's radio show. Palin continued, "...instead of government thinking that they need to take over and make decisions for us according to some politician or politician's wife priorities, just leave us alone, get off our back, and allow us as individuals to exercise our own God-given rights to make our own decisions and then our country gets back on the right track" (Stein).
While Palin has a valid point, I do not believe that the issue is the government telling people what they can do, rather the real issue is childhood obesity. I find it hard to believe that anyone does not want this issue fixed, as it is strongly and negatively impacting American children. In fact, Michelle Obama blatantly stated that her goal is not to get the government involved in people's lives: "I haven't spoken to one expert about this issue who has said the solution is having government tell us what we can do." Obama added, "There is a place in this life for cookies and ice cream and burgers and fries, that is a part of childhood. This is about balance, about really small changes that can add up, like walking to school when you can, replacing soda with water or skim milk, trimming portions just a little" (Stolberg). Charles M. Blow, Op-Ed columnist for The New York Times, criticized Palin by claiming that the Republicans will put down any efforts by the Democrats: "True to form, anything the Obamas support, no matter how innocuous or admirable, the right reflexively rejects, sometimes in malicious tones" (Blow). I feel that politicians need to worry less about their political parties and more about the needs of the American people. To me, it could not be more apparent that something needs to be done about childhood obesity, whether the Democrats or Republicans want to take action.
The other main critics of Michelle Obama's anti-childhood obesity efforts are food and beverage companies that could potentially lose business. According to Ron Nixon, contributor for The New York Times, many food companies are petitioning Michelle Obama's efforts to take sodas out of school and make lunches healthier. "Food companies including Coca-Cola, Del Monte Foods and the makers of frozen pizza and French fries have a huge stake in the new guidelines and many argue that it would raise the cost of meals and call for food that too many children just will not eat" (Nixon). Kevin W. Keane, senior vice president of the American Beverage Association agrees with Palin that the new restrictions are allowing the government to be far too involved in people's lives. "Once you start going into grocery carts, deciding on what people can or cannot buy, where do you stop," Keane asks (Pear). Again, I feel that critics are forgetting the main issue: America's children. Further, I think it is completely selfish of food and beverage companies to put their business above children's health.
Marion Nestle, a professor at New York University and author of "Food Politics," feels that somebody should have set guidelines for schools years ago. "Schools are supposed to set an example of many values of society, and one of them ought to be eating well," he said. "It's unfortunate that the food industry is putting profits before the health of children." Margo G. Wootan, director of nutrition policy at the Center for Science in the Public Interest, agrees that politicians and businessmen are losing site of what is important. "The whole fight obscures the fact that the U.S.D.A's proposal is about helping kids eat a wide variety of vegetables and make lunches overall healthier," Margo claimed. "It's about our children's health. I think that point has long since been lost" (Nixon).
Clearly, childhood obesity is a rapidly growing issue that requires attention. First, Lady Michelle Obama has launched the Let's Move! campaign to promote healthy eating and bills to make schools healthier. The major opponents of this view are right-wing Republicans who fear too much government change and food companies who fear losing business. I agree with all of the people that say that the children need to be a priority before political parties and business. It strongly disappoints me that there was any opposition to Michelle Obama's efforts in the first place. Who does not promote the well being of children?
Works Cited
"America's Move to Raise A Healthier Generation of Kids." Let's Move! Web. 22 Nov. 2011. Blow, Charles M. "The Biggest Losers." The New York Times 11 March 2011: nytimes.com. Web. 14 November 2011.
Hellmich, Nanci. "Childhood Obesity: A Lifetime of Danger." USA Today. Jan. 2008. Web. 28 Nov. 2011.
Obama, Michelle. "A food bill we need." The Washington Post 2 August 2010: washingtonpost.com. Web. 12 November 2011.
Nixon, Ron. "School Lunch Proposals Set off a Dispute." The New York Times 1 November 2011: nytimes.com. Web. 14 November 2011.
Pear, Robert. "Soft Drink Industry Fights Proposed Food Stamp Ban." The New York Times 29 April 2011: nytimes.com. Web. 14 November 2011.
Roberston, Campbell. "First Lady Asks Congress to Join Childhood Obesity Fight." The New York Times 8 September 2010: nytimes.com. Web. 12 November 2011.
Stein, Sam. "Palin Slams Michelle Obama Again, This Time for Anti-Obesity Campaign." The Huffington Post 24 November 2010: huffingtonpost.com. Web. 12 November 2011.
Stolberg, Sheryl G. "Childhood Obesity Battle Is Taken Up by First Lady." The New York Times 10 Feb. 2010. Print.
Suwanski, Rich. "Childhood Obesity a 'personal tragedy'" Messenger-Inquirer 1 Oct. 2011. Print.
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