Clinton: 'I was a fat band boy'

cnn.com ^ | Friday, August 5, 2005

[F14 Pilot]

ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- Former President Bill Clinton said his weight problem and brush with death are the catalysts behind his foundation's initiative of tackling childhood obesity.

Once famous for his love of fast food, Clinton told CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta that bad health habits since childhood led to his September 2004 quadruple bypass surgery. That operation, he said, opened his eyes to a larger issue, and he turned his attention to the problem of overweight American children.

"The brush with death I had maybe had the biggest impact of all," Clinton recalled. "I realized that one more time I've been given another chance, and I wanted to make the most of it."

Clinton, who admits "I was the fat band boy," said he knows what unhealthy eating habits can do to a young body.

"Emory University's done a study saying that the obesity alone accounted for 25 percent of the increase in health costs of the last 15 years, so I thought it was a chance where I could save the most lives ... do the most good and also do something that I understood from my own experience," he said.

Clinton hopes to do that with a partnership between the William J. Clinton Foundation and American Heart Association. The initiative, launched in May, aims to "stop the increasing prevalence of childhood obesity" in the United States by 2010.

The goal is that by starting children on a path that includes a proper diet and exercise, they'll grow up to be healthy adults and reduce obesity-related health costs.

Other highlights of the initiative include working with the food and restaurant industry and the media and increasing physical activity and improving lunches in schools.

Clinton said lawmakers should take a greater involvement in the fight --

[George W. Bush]

Actually, this seems pretty harmless as political causes go. But Carter's work with Habitat For Humanity doesn't keep him busy enough to keep his mouth shut.

Bill's probably looking for a 'good cause' to help Hillary out and, failing her success in '08, to be a good liberal leader and have the press say nice things about him for the next 20 years.

[snarks_when_bored]

I've got to pretty much agree with that. I wonder whether there's any audio or video of Clinton imitating Elvis saying, "Thank you very much!"?

[Piquaboy]

I had not heard anything about him in so long I thought he had passed on. No such luck!

[Oldeconomybuyer]

The goal is that by starting children on a path that includes a proper diet and exercise, they'll grow up to be healthy adults and reduce obesity-related health costs....

[Husker8877]

Don't be surprised if he buys a llama and takes up with a friend named Pedro

And adopts an African child.

[LisaS]

I'd say Clinton is a little too late. He had his chance to set a good example as president. That squandered and now he's irrelevant.

[Mia T]

Who in heaven's name is writing missus clinton's speeches?
A "handling the hillary dud factor" AFTERWORD



SCHEMA PINOCCHIO
how the clintons are handling the hillary dud factor

the MAD hillary series
WHY MISSUS CLINTON IS DANGEROUS
FOR THE CHILDREN,
FOR AMERICA,
FOR THE WORLD

madhillary.com (coming soon)
madhillary.blogspot.com
_{COPYRIGHT MIA T 2005}

MAD hillary talks series #1 ALFRED E."What, me worry?" CLINTON + CRAZY HIL MAD COVER STORY THE THREAT OF TERRORISM AS CLOSE AS A CLINTON TO OVAL OFFICE	MAD hillary talks series #2 HILLARY'S MIDDLE-FINGER MINDSET Do you really want THAT finger on the button?
MAD hillary talks series #3 "What, me worry?" THE THREAT OF TERRORISM AS CLOSE AS A CLINTON TO OVAL OFFICE	MAD hillary talks series #4 NANO-PRESIDENT the danger of the unrelenting smallness of bill + hillary clinton
MAD hillary talks series #5 SCHEMA PINOCCHIO how the clintons are handling the hillary dud factor

[jla]

[Caipirabob]

ROTFLMAO!!!

And here I was thinking I missed a payment to my oldest friend John - LOL!

I should be so thin...

Still, the look on his face is "Universal".

[NicknamedBob]

I'm only puzzled by one thing.

Why is this in News?

[GianniV]

Same here - does Clinton realize his wife is obese? What is she doing to lose weight?

Obesity is a national epidemic, way worse than smoking. So, what kind of role model is Hillary when she continues to gain weight and thus, signal to today's youth that's it's just fine to be a fat slob.