Obesity Legislation

At my high school the vending machines ruled! How else could you eat nacho cheese Doritos, peanut M&M's, and raw Pop-Tarts for lunch?

But nowadays, with the number of overweight and obese kids on the rise, vending machines and junk food are getting the heave-ho from schools.

And according to a new survey by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more and more schools are expelling the junk.

If New York is the city that never sleeps, then the Bronx is an insomniac that raids the refrigerator at midnight for a late-night snack.

When the CDC's Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System analyzed data from 2003, they discovered that of NYC's five boroughs, the Bronx had the highest percentage of overweight and obese citizens at over 62 percent.

That's why some people are screaming civil rights violations and starting obese advocacy groups promoting anti-bias laws and increased tolerance by the healthcare industry and in the workplace.

Lawmakers in the state of Mississippi have created a bill to prohibit restaurants from serving food to obese people.

Bill 282 reads: Any food establishment to which this section applies shall not be allowed to serve food to any person who is obese, based on criteria prescribed by the State Department of Health...

Los Angeles officials are considering implementing a 2 year ban on new fast food outlets in the south of the district.

With the health of westernized cultures in tailspin, it is clear that we need to take drastic steps to reverse this trend. This will take a collaborative effort between government, media, medical establishments, educational institutions, big food as well as a shift in societal values.

Far-fetched I realize, but here are my "Pollyanna-ish" ideas anyway.

Forget the BMI (Body Mass Index), try your postal code instead. Researchers from the University of Washington have found a pronounced correlation between a persons address ZIP code and their weight.

Closer analysis shows the issue is more about demographics (income and race) than geography.

Big food companies and fast food chains are constantly under attack from health advocates for their contribution to the growing waistlines and chronic disease of developed nations.

Much of the finger pointing is justifiable, given the ubiquity, proximity, convenience and low cost of the majority of food options available to us via big food/restaurant.

Should big food and fast food joints take responsibility for their part in the health crisis that is upon us (such as a fat tax)? To what degree are they responsible?

Singapore plans to end a 15-year-old anti-obesity program in schools after complaints from parents that overweight children, in particular, were being singled out and teased by classmates.

French authorities have issued new guidelines for food advertising. The new guidelines will affect advertisements on television, radio, billboards and the Internet for processed, sweetened or salted food and drinks.

Here are the warnings:

Do people take those warnings seriously?

via Washington Post.

Will 2007 be the year of obesity legislation? Experts in the UK are beginning to think that this is the answer. "Pull yourself together, eat less and exercise more" is an inadequate response to obesity, voiced only by "less perceptive health professionals" and the media

UK advertising regulator Ofcom has unveiled new restrictions for food and drink advertising. The rules aim to curb advertising of junk food targeted toward children.

Will the regulations make any impact?

UK celebrity chef Jamie Oliver has pointed the finger at US junk food culture. Oliver supports the New York City initiative to ban trans-fats."The junk food companies have got more resources than the government and more money to spend on poxy lawyers so I completely admire and condone the mayor for doing it," he said. (via Reuters)

New York Councilman Joel Rivera wants to ban fast food restaurants from certain areas of New York. Apparently such a law already exists in a small Californian city - Calistoga.

The International Congress on Obesity is underway in Sydney, Australia. Some scientists are calling for radical reform in the way agriculture is subsidized, others point to the processing of food. "The over-production of oil, fat and sugar, largely due to government subsidies to protect farm industry revenues, has contributed over decades to the health crisis we have today."