http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/washington/2010/09/michelle-obama-obesity-bla...


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3:35 am
September 21, 2010


Taking her campaign against obesity before the Congressional Black Caucus, First Lady Michelle Obama said childhood obesity had become a national epidemic and was particularly bad in black communities.

She said the situation had become so serious, especially in black communities, that today's children "might be the first generation in history on track to lead shorter lives than their parents."

Obama drew laughter from the black legislators in D.C. when she said, "We all need to start making some changes to how our families eat. Now, everyone loves a good Sunday dinner. Me included. And there’s nothing wrong with that. The problem is when we eat Sunday dinner Monday through Saturday." (Her full speech text is below.)

She called obesity, especially in the black community, the "slow, quiet, everyday threat that doesn’t always appear to warrant the headline urgency of some of the other issues that we face."

A day after Obama called on the National Restaurant Assn. for drastic changes in ...

... the contents, food preparation and menus of its establishments to facilitate a radical reformation of eating habits, even if that meant less business, the first lady acknowledged:
"The fact is that many of us, and many of the folks that we know and love, have struggled with our weight. And often, it becomes the kind of thing that we just sort of accept as part of our daily lives, as something we know we should do something about, but we always push it off until later. It winds up taking a back burner to more pressing issues like crumbling schools, and neighborhoods that aren’t safe, and families that can’t pay the bills or even put food on the table."

She said the obesity health problem with its nebulous varied causes had become so urgent that finding solutions could no longer be postponed.

She likened the anti-obesity program to the civil rights movement and called on the legislators to initiate or join local programs to improve eating habits and the availability of nutritious foods, as well as parks, playgrounds and safer streets where children could be more active and play. To plant neighborhood gardens or perhaps create dance teams, even in faith-based institutions.

READ THE REST AT THE LA TIMES LINK ABOVE.

 

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