Posted on 09/03/2006 5:56:04 AM PDT by Mrs. Don-o
Obesity has reached pandemic proportions throughout the world and is now the greatest single contributor to chronic disease, an international conference was told here.
"This insidious, creeping pandemic of obesity is now engulfing the entire world," Australia's Monash University professor Paul Zimmet, chair of the 10th International Congress on Obesity, said on the opening day of the conference.
The spread of the problem was "led by affluent western nations, whose physical activity and dietary habits are regrettably being adopted by developing nations," Zimmet told more than 2,000 delegates.
The world now has more fat people than hungry ones, according to World Health Organisation figures, with more than a billion overweight people compared to 800 million who are undernourished.
The congress on obesity is held every four years, with the last three staged in Toronto (1994), Paris (1998) and Sao Paulo (2002).
"The conference will treat obesity as the keystone of all health priorities because it is the single greatest contributor to chronic disease throughout the world," said University of Sydney professor Ian Caterson, the event co-chair.
"There are now more overweight people in the world than undernourished and we are seeing the double burden of the extremes of malnutrition -- undernutrition and overnutrition -- in many developing countries.
"We know this is not about gluttony -- it is the interaction of heredity and environment. We know that small changes can make a big difference in peoples weight and health."
Zimmet said the problem needed urgent solutions -- not just widespread changes to diet and exercise but the rethinking of national policies on urban and social planning, agriculture policy, education, transport and other areas.
He also warned in an opening address that the growth of obesity-related diabetes, or so-called "diabesity", was set to bankrupt health budgets all over the world.
Around 370 speakers and presenters at the six-day congress will discuss a range of issues, including scientific research on how the brain regulates energy and advances in the prevention and clinical management of obesity.
The conference is being attended by academics and health professionals from Australia, Japan, the United States, Britain, Canada, Sweden, Indonesia and New Zealand.
Is this confirmation of the obvious?
I believe that tends to come from a position of guilt.
I don't see what courage has to do with it. It probably takes more courage to be obese.
It's much more a matter of awareness and determination.
Don't worry! Mike Huckabee will be here to save the world from obesity as soon as we elect him POTUS in 2008!! (sarcasm)
What a terrible burden it must be to go through life so utterly bereft of a sense of humor.
Genetics play a much larger role in your health than you're admitting. My best friend who I grew up with and I share similiar lifestyles, diets, etc, but he had a heart attack at 40. Coincidence of coincidences, his father died from a heart attack at the age of 46. He now has to eat much healthier and take medications to keep his cholesterol and triglycerides at levels that my body does naturally with a diet that's not near as healthy as his.
Dear Madame,
My sense of humor is doing just fine. Did you make a joke or something? If so, maybe it just wasn't as funny as you thought.
I do thank you though for using the word "bereft" though. That's a word you don't see everyday.
A walk down any street in America clearly proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that growing obesity (no pun intended) is definitely not a made up problem. It's real, and it's more than evident.
Uh oh, you've just enunciated the New Heresy.
Better put the umbrella up.
This doesn't play well with the Crisis Crowd.
I don't need that, but it is obvious others sure do.
My daughter's friend is over here a lot (my daughter is also over there alot) and I make sure there are all kinds of snacks in the house all the time.....9 times out of 10 they head for the fruit or celery and peanut butter, instead of the cookies . So when they want cookies or chips I don't say no.
We went to a U-Pick orchard 2 weeks ago (we were supposed to go back Friday but Ernesto had different plans for us) and after picking 10 pounds of blueberries, all those 2 8yos wanted to do was pick pears..............the 2 year old was content squishing blueberries and the other mom wanted apples. We had an hour ride home, and between the 2 oldest they ate nearly every pear they picked.
And people wonder why I am concerned about the nanny-state? I DON'T NEED IT.
You're welcome, your humorless notwithstanding.
You'd be surprised to learn that in this instance, the oatmeal pies are much better for you. Chedder cheese is typically 5/7 fat. It's horrible for you.
My hat's off to you. I don't really peddle an exercise bike as I Freep.
But I do lift weights and type with my toes.
Thank you for proving my point.
Read on. I agree. It was not a well constructed post on my part.
Let's not forget that part, OK?
EXCUSE ME...........
Kindly explain to me what your reference to me was meant to imply.....
I get up an hour early before work and either run or ride my bike. If I could convince my wife to put the treadmill in the basement I would do it more often especially during the winter.
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