Governments need to get aggressive with obesity

Researchers working for the American government along with a research organisation called RTI International have concluded that having a BMI of 30 plus on average will cost you over $1,400 annually. They also worked out that obesity related health expenses were costing the American people $147 billion every year which was twice as much as it was ten years ago. The research was published in the medical journal Health Affairs.

Mr. Eric Finkelstein speaking on behalf of RTI spoke very frankly when he said that unless the American government dealt with the issue of obesity they would never solve the problem of rising health care expenses throughout the nation. He also said that the only major health issues which were getting worse in America were obesity and diabetes.

Dr Thomas Frieden, from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention made some interesting observations in that he said that the American obesity problem was not an individual problem but one which affected society as a whole and therefore a whole change in attitudes was necessary to get people slim.

We concur with this reasoning at Ukmedix News and believe that peer pressure, social conditioning and education can do much more to curb obesity than any diet plan or low fat food. If it becomes socially unacceptable to eat huge portions at restaurants and the fashionable thing to do is to get exercise then young people will follow suit.

Governments need to get aggressive with obesity and stop worrying about whether they are treading on the toes of big business or infringing on individual liberties because there is nothing more which restricts you from living your life to the full than being obese.

There are millions of obese people who want to lose weight and they need help from their government and not another impossible to follow diet plan.

So Obama and Brown, please get on it!