Prevention Matters

US Surgeon General, Regina Benjamin told Congress yesterday that obesity “may dramatically impact the quality and longevity of life for an entire generation of children.” In forceful testimony before the Senate Committee on Health, Education and Pensions, Benjamin noted “the prevalence of obesity has increased dramatically in the United States, tripling among children and doubling among adults. Today, two-thirds of adults and nearly one in three children are overweight or obese.” She explained that from 1980 to 2008, obesity among adults rose from 13.4% to 34.3% and among children, rates rose from 5% to 17%.

The solution isn’t easy or quick but it is obvious and encouraging that the Obama administration is engaged. The Surgeon General explained that last month the President established a new Task Force on Childhood Obesity and charged it with reviewing all Federal programs dealing with child nutrition and physical activity and developing a national action plan. The National Action Plan is scheduled to be completed by May 9. Perhaps no less important, is the very visible role and support to this effort being given by First Lady Michelle Obama and her commitment to end “childhood obesity within a generation.” Her “Let’s Move” campaign is being supported by an innovative series of new web-based tools including the next generation Food Pyramid and USDA’s Food Environmental Atlas. These projects will help families make healthier food and physical activity choices and better understand national and local trends on food decisions.

Benjamin concluded her testimony with a simple but powerful message. “Instead of bombarding people with lists of what not to do, we need to empower them with what to do to promote health. Healthy eating and physical activity should be something all Americans want to do, not something they feel they have to do. We need to encourage people to take up activities that they enjoy, like swimming, dancing, or biking. We need to show them how healthy foods can be affordable, accessible, and delicious.”

Sage advice from the nation’s Family Doctor.

Posted by:
Ripley Forbes
Director, Government Affairs, Partnership for Prevention

Surgeon General Regina M. Benjamin is calling for the establishment of a "new normal" in the war on obesity and overweight, in which the goals transcend the current fixation on numerical targets associated with weight or the body-mass index (BMI). Benjamin was joined by First Lady Michelle Obama and HHS Secretary Kathleen Sibelius in releasing her first official report, entitled The Surgeon General’s Vision for a Healthy and Fit Nation 2010.

"The real reward has to be something that people can feel and enjoy and celebrate," Benjamin writes. "That reward is invigorating, energizing, joyous health. It is a level of health that allows people to embrace each day and live their lives to the fullest—without disease, disability, or lost productivity."


Benjamin's report seeks to update, strengthen and expand the 2001 Surgeon General’s Call to Action on obesity and overweight issued by then-Surgeon General David Satcher. She identifies opportunities for prevention to make a difference in numerous settings - the home, the community, child care settings, schools, work sites and the medical community.

The first lady recently announced that she will launch a major initiative on childhood obesity in the next few weeks and has asked HHS to play a key role.

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By voice vote, the U.S. Senate Thursday night confirmed Dr. Regina Benjamin to serve as Surgeon General. Benjamin, 53, was the first black woman to head a state medical society, received the Nelson Mandela Award for Health and Human Rights and just last fall received a MacArthur Foundation "genius grant." In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, she rebuilt her rural health clinic in Bayou La Batre, Ala., which serves 4,400 patients who would be hard-pressed to find care elsewhere.

Benjamin was nominated by President Barack Obama in July, but a month later Republicans put a hold on all health nominees because the administration had imposed a "gag rule" on companies offering Medicare Advantage to seniors. Those companies were sending out information to customers telling them that a Democratic healthcare reform proposal would cut benefits. The Department of Health and Human Services issued a memo in mid-October telling companies they can provide information about legislation that affects them if their customers agree to receive such information.

But Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) blasted Republicans on Thursday for holding up the nomination of Benjamin and other nominees for reasons "completely unrelated to their qualification." In Benjamin's case, concern had been expressed about holding up the confirmation of one of the nation's leading spokespersons on public health when the H1N1 epidemic was spreading.

Dr. Regina Benjamin, a MacArthur "genius grant" recipient who founded a clinic to serve the poor along Alabama’s Gulf Coast, was named by President Barack Obama as his choice for U.S. surgeon general. The nomination requires Senate confirmation.