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They say everything’s bigger in Texas. Unfortunately, according to the latest obesity study by Men’s Health magazine, so are the people in Texas. Five of the ten fattest cities in America are located in Texas. This is one contest no city is proud to win – obesity is not a laughing matter. Poor diet and physical inactivity are becoming a leading preventable cause of death in the United States. The U.S. Surgeon General has even gone so far as to call obesity an epidemic. One third of adults in the U.S. are overweight and another third can be classified as obese. These statistics mean that fewer than half of America’s adults are living at a healthy weight. The costs associated with excess pounds and obesity are enormous. Diabetes, high blood pressure, heart attacks and cancer are just a few of the health risks more prevalent in overweight individuals. Health care costs are at an all time high, not to mention the economic costs due to lost productivity, which recently totaled $117 billion. Why are so many Texans overweight? The answer can be summed up in one word – lifestyle. In general, people spend more time sitting in front of computer and television screens than they did 30 years ago. Suburban sprawl has not helped our declining level of inactivity either. Today we spend more hours in our cars because there are fewer places within walking distance of our homes. People are simply not getting enough regular physical activity. To make matters worse, our dietary habits have deteriorated. We eat more saturated fat, sugar and processed food products. Fast food diets combined with sedentary lifestyles are a recipe for disaster. To make healthy changes, aim to eat foods that are low fat and lean, increase your consumption of fruits and vegetables and, most importantly, keep a close eye on portion sizes. If you have school-aged children, pack wholesome lunches and encourage them to eat healthy snacks. Texas schools are actively taking part in the “battle against the bulge.” Our state’s Agriculture Commissioner Susan Combs recently unveiled a plan to limit the availability of junk food and fatty snacks in public school cafeterias. If her plan is implemented, our children will learn to eat right at an early age. I applaud her leadership. Change is not easy, but this is more than your health we’re talking about here; it could be your life. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently released a study finding that by next year obesity will be the leading preventable cause of death among Americans. Currently, tobacco is the number one cause of preventable deaths, but the growing obesity epidemic will soon claim as many as 500,000 American lives each year. That’s an astounding number of people dying before their time.There are several things you can easily alter in your daily routine to help you and the ones you love live a more healthy lifestyle. I have a rule that I always take stairs at the Capitol, rarely using the elevator. At work, walk over to your coworkers’ desks periodically instead of using e-mail or the telephone. You might try parking toward the rear of a parking lot and slightly increasing the distance you walk to get to wherever you’re headed. Establish a regular program of physical activity three or more times per week, but take it slow. Start with one day a week and go from there. Also, make sure to check with your physician before making any drastic changes in your exercise routine. For further motivation, sign up to participate in a walk or race for a charity or non-profit organization. To help children stay physically fit, enroll them in activities that get them off the couch and on the move, and encourage schools to increase physical education requirements. The growing number of people who are overweight and obese is alarming. Fortunately, it’s a problem we can work together to address. For more information on healthy living, visit www.texasroundup.org and www.agr.state.tx.us/foodnutrition. Your life may depend on it.
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