INTRODUCTION OF THE PROMOTING HEALTHIER LIFELONG IMPROVEMENTS IN FOOD AND EXERCISE ACT OF 2020; Congressional Record Vol. 166, No. 17
(Extensions of Remarks - January 27, 2020)
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[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E84]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
INTRODUCTION OF THE PROMOTING HEALTHIER LIFELONG IMPROVEMENTS IN FOOD
AND EXERCISE ACT OF 2020
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HON. ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON
of the district of columbia
in the house of representatives
Monday, January 27, 2020
Ms. NORTON. Madam Speaker, I rise to introduce the Promoting
Healthier Lifelong Improvements in Food and Exercise Act (LIFE Act),
which authorizes a national initiative to attack a major health problem
in the United States that cannot be remedied through the health care
system alone. Increasing rates of overweight and obesity are now found
among Americans of every age, race and major demographic group, and
threaten the health of Americans like no disease or condition. In fact,
the key to eliminating many of the most serious health conditions is
not only to reduce overweight and obesity, but also to encourage
exercise of all kinds.
The LIFE Act would provide $25 million to the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention (CDC) for a coordinated national effort to
reverse increasingly sedentary lifestyles and diets that are high in
fat and sugar. Specifically, my bill would require the CDC to establish
the first national strategy to combat the overweight and obesity
epidemic. The CDC, either directly or through grants to states or local
organizations, would train health professionals to recognize the signs
of overweight and obesity early in order to educate Americans about
proper nutrition and regular exercise; conduct public education
campaigns about how to recognize and address overweight and obesity;
and develop intervention strategies for use in everyday life, such as
in the workplace and community settings.
In 2017, estimates from the CDC National Center for Health Statistics
showed that since 1971 to 1974, the percentage of children and
adolescents who are obese has increased from 5 percent to 18.5 percent.
The CDC also reports that Type 2 Diabetes, once considered an adult
disease, is now widespread among children. The rising cost of the
health care system, including insurance premiums, reflects this
epidemic. Today, chronic diseases, many of which are caused or
exacerbated by overweight and obesity, account for 70 percent of all
deaths in the U.S., and 75 percent of U.S. medical care costs. A
focused national health initiative would provide guidance to the states
to engage in similar programs, as mayors of some cities have done.
A national focus could lead to changes, such as greater participation
in high school physical education classes, which dropped from 42
percent in 1991 to 25 percent in 1995 and has remained constant through
2015. Changes in nutrition are equally critical because more than half
of all young people consume too much fat, a factor in the increase of
overweight youth. Data also show an increase in unhealthy eating habits
for adults and no change in physical activity.
To cite an example of the need for action, the District of Columbia
is one of the fittest cities in the United States, according to a 2019
study by the American College of Sports Medicine, yet even here,
obesity continues to be a severe problem. Approximately one-fifth of
District residents are considered obese. Most of the obesity epidemic
is exercise-and-food-related.
I urge support of this important bill to mobilize the country now
before entirely preventable health conditions, which often begin in
childhood, overwhelm the nation's health care system.
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