- Stop smoking
- Eat the carrot
- Get some sleep
- Fitness mitigates the risk at all levels
- May be obese yet healthy
- Make some fit friends
- Look out for the obesity tax!

What do you think group!!!
I attended a conference last weekend in Omaha, "Obesity 360" and these are the take-home points given at the conclusion of the meeting.
Could we do it????
Thats the challenge, gang.

I am puzzled by the fifth point, "may be obese yet healthy. " Could you expand on that one, please? Doesn't obesity increase the risk of all sorts of illnesses? I'm also curious about the obesity tax. Sounds like an interesting conference. I would be interested in hearing more about it.

Karen

SW 213 CW 180 GW 130
Pragmatist Goal 1/1/10 170
PG 5/1/09 177
PG 4/1/09 187 (180)
PG 3/1/09 195 (190)
PG 2/1/09 203 (198)
SW 1/1/09 211

Here's some more points from the meeting. The obesity tax is about junk food tax. Taxes can limit consumption just like cigarettes. Nearly 80% of adults over 25 are obese or overweight. Fast food is now cheaper than healthier options. Obesity is becoming the most significant public health issue in the country. Health costs will be even greater than tobacco costs.
With regards to maybe obese yet healthy, the conference explained that fat may not be all bad. The fat cell has some protective function to the body but it depends on location & size. The subcutaneous(buttocks, arms & legs) fat is the good kind compared to the bad kind which is the visceral(abdomen) or the ectopic kind(intramuscular, around the liver, around the heart, around the pancreas). Bad kind is fat cell gone wild. The subcutaneous kind is protective & has antiinflammatory function, boost immune system.
It is really a very interesting meeting. I learned a lot about fat cell(adipous tissue) being an endocrine cell but if it gets too much it increases your risks 100-200%.
I hope this is simple enough for you.

LPHONG