World Tai Chi and Qigong DayFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaJump to: navigation, searchWorld Tai Chi & Qigong Day's first event in Kansas City, Kansas, USAWorld Tai Chi and Qigong Day (WTCQD) also spelled World T'ai Chi and Ch'i Kung Day, is an annual event held the last Saturday of April each year to promote the related disciplines of T'ai Chi Ch'uan and qigong in sixty countries since 1999.The mission of this multinational effort is ongoing, to expose people to the growing body of medical research related to traditional Chinese medicine and direct them to teachers in their home towns. The global WTCQD directory doesn't screen or recommend the teachers it lists based on any vetting process or discriminate between T'ai Chi Ch'uan or qigong styles over others. The directory is an open directory anyone can post to.World Tai Chi & Qigong Day also acts as a public, government, and media source for information on those disciplines, and works in conjunction with such divergent institutions as the National Council on the Aging, The National Parkinson's Foundation Annual Conference, the Fibromyalgia Coalition International, Folsom Prison (Maximum Security Prison in California), Rotary Clubs International, etc.Contents[hide]1 Overview2 Official recognition3 Organization4 History5 External link6 Online Video Examples of Various Tai Chi Forms7 Media Resource History8 Health Issue, Tai Chi, Qigong, and Support Groups9 Photos of World Tai Chi & Qigong Day Events//[edit] OverviewWorld Tai Chi & Qigong Day event in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USAThe annual April event is open to the general public, and begins in the earliest time zones of New Zealand at 10 am, and then participants across Oceania, Asia, Africa, Europe, North America, and South America take part, with celebrations in sixty nations and several hundred cities, ending with the final events in the last time zones of Hawaii almost an entire day later. Celebrations include mass Tai Chi Chuan and qigong exhibitions in many cities, and free classes in most participating cities.World Tai Chi and Qigong Day's stated goals are to:1) Educate the world about emerging medical research revealing health benefits that Tai Chi Chuan and qigong offer.2) Educate about the increasing use of these ancient traditional Chinese medicine modalities in business, education, penal and drug rehabilitation.3) Provide a global vision of cooperation for health & healing purposes across geopolitical boundaries, and also an appeal to people worldwide to embrace wisdom from all the cultures of the world.World Tai Chi & Qigong Day official proclamations[edit] Official recognitionWorld Tai Chi and Qigong Day events have been recognized by the United Nations World Health Organization (UNWHO) for participation in the UNWHO's "Move for Health" movement, and World Tai Chi and Qigong Day has been officially proclaimed by governors for their states including the US states of California, Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Kansas, Maryland, Massachusetts, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Utah. Senates and legislatures have officially proclaimed World Tai Chi and Qigong Day, including the Senate of the state of New York, the Senate and Legislature of the state of New Jersey, California's State Assembly, and in 2005 the national Senate of Puerto Rico proclaimed "Dia Mundial de Tai Chi y Qigong" (World Tai Chi and Qigong Day) for Puerto Rico.Mayors of many major cities have also officially proclaimed World Tai Chi and Qigong Day for their cities, including South Buenos Aires (Argentina), Austin Texas, Osasco (Brazil or Brasil), Cupertino (California), El Paso (Texas), Hastings (Nebraska), Pemberton and Willingboro (New Jersey), Patchogue & Rochester (New York), San Angelo (Texas), Scranton & York (Pennsylvania), St. Louis (Missouri), St. Augustine (Florida), Toledo (Ohio), Asheville (North Carolina), and Suffolk County (New York).World Tai Chi & Qigong Day event in Hong Kong, China[edit] OrganizationThe event's international organizing center provides information on Tai Chi Chuan and qigong, including health research, information on how Tai Chi Chuan and qigong relate to traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), what people new to Tai Chi Chuan and qigong can expect when they attend classes, and video and audio samples of various Tai Chi Chuan and qigong exercises and forms. The site also provides links to Tai Chi Chuan and qigong publications, associations, schools, and groups in many states and countries, with a searchable database that lists schools by their country or US state. The site is viewable in nine languages with translation instructions via babel fish translation programs, although the translations can be difficult to decifer at times, but still useful.The local events are independently organized by local Tai Chi Chuan and qigong schools, groups, and associations. The format of events varies by locality, although most involve free classes and mass exhibitions. International organizing for the event is done at the World Tai Chi and Qigong Day office in Overland Park, Kansas.World Tai Chi & Qigong Day event in Rio de Janero, Brasil (Brazil)[edit] HistoryThe global event began in 1999. However the first event, that inspired the global event, was held in Kansas City, Missouri in 1998 on the lawn of the Nelson Atkins Museum of Art in midtown Kansas City, where the Kansas City Tai Chi Club held a mass Tai Chi exhibition and teach-in involving nearly two-hundred people. CNN Headline News covered the event, which generated interest beyond Kansas City to quickly grow into a national and international event in the following years.[edit] External linkWorld Tai Chi & Qigong Day website[edit] Online Video Examples of Various Tai Chi Formshttp://www.worldtaichiday.org/LESSONTaiChi.html[edit] Media Resource HistoryInternational Herald Tribune - June 5, 2006 -http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/06/05/opinion/edmoore.phpBBC Worldwide Radio (Ecuador) - April 27, 2006 - Interview with World Tai Chi & Qigong Day FounderUSA Weekend - February 24-26, 2006 -http://www.usaweekend.com/06_issues/060226/060226thinksmart.html#fitsmartParade Magazine - October 9, 2005 -http://www.parade.com/articles/editions/2005/edition_10-09-2005/featured_2Reader's Digest (Asia) - January, 2004 - "Limitless Energy"New York Times - Sunday, April 1, 2001 - "Tai Chi Time"South China Morning Post - April 1, 2000 - "Slowly Breathing in Strength"[edit] Health Issue, Tai Chi, Qigong, and Support GroupsAttention Deficit Disorder (ADD & ADHD) http://worldtaichiday.org/ADDadhd.htmlAllergies & Asthmahttp://worldtaichiday.org/ALLERGIESAsthma.htmlAlzheimer's Diseasehttp://worldtaichiday.org/ALZHEIMERSDISEASE.htmlAnxietyhttp://worldtaichiday.org/ANXIETY.htmlCardiac Rehabilitationhttp://worldtaichiday.org/LIBRARYArticles/LIBRARYTaiChiCARDIAC.htmlDiabeteshttp://worldtaichiday.org/Diabetes.htmlHigh Blood Pressurehttp://worldtaichiday.org/LIBRARYArticles/LIBRARYTaiChiHIGHBLOODPRESSURE.htmlIrritable Bowel Syndromehttp://worldtaichiday.org/IrritableBowelSyndromeIBS.htmlMenopause, Bone Loss, Depressionhttp://worldtaichiday.org/LIBRARYArticles/LIBRARYTaiChiBoneLossMenopause.htmlParkinson's Diseasehttp://worldtaichiday.org/PARKINSONSTC.htmlWeight Losshttp://worldtaichiday.org/LIBRARYArticles/LIBRARYTaiChiandWeightLoss.html[edit] Photos of World Tai Chi & Qigong Day EventsAtlas represents a few of the hundreds of World Tai Chi & Qigong Day events held in April each yearComprehensive Photo Gallery:2006 - http://www.worldtaichiday.org/photos/2006WTCQD/2006Photos/WTCQDPHOTO2006.html2005 - http://www.worldtaichiday.org/WTCQDPHOTO2005.htmlNew York City (Manhattan), New York, United StatesMelbourne, Australia, OceaniaSan Juan, Puerto RicoAugsberg, Germany (Deutschland), European UnionThailand, AsiaRoyal Oak, Michigan, United StatesIsraelIrvine, California, United StatesSt. Louis, Missouri, United StatesPhoenix, Arizona, United StatesBrussels, BelgiumVarna, BulgariaBeijing, China - Italian EmbassyEcuadorEl SalvadorGuatemalaIrelandFlorence, ItalyRome, ItalyJuarez, MexicoOslo, Norway - Nobel Peace CenterOslo, Norway - Nobel Peace CenterBelgrade, SerbiaSpokane, Washington, United StatesWeight Loss Information Research CenterObesity, Diet and Related InformationWeight Loss and Obesity information presented in an easy to understand visual format for individuals, educators, researchers and students.The Weight Loss Information Center is a Polson Enterprises web site.If you become aware of any information you think would be useful for our readers that is not listed on this site, broken links, or have any comments about our site, please email us.Weight Loss and Obesity Informational PostersWeight Loss Program ReviewsWeight Loss and Obesity LibraryWeight Loss & Obesity in the News a blog of interesting and unusual items in the newsEconomic Costs of ObesityFood LabelsObesity / Weight Loss SurgeryWeight Loss and Obesity MarketingWeight Loss and Obesity HumorObesity AssociationsAnti-Obesity Commercials and Positive MessagesSome People Are ExtremeMission of the Weight Loss Information CenterObesity Policy governmental interventions addressing the problemSome Causes / Drivers of Rising Obesity LevelsObesity is Leading Cause of Death in the U.S. - Or Is It?Weight Loss and Obesity LinksNutritionWhat Can I Do to Help Fight the Problem of ObesityComing SoonDisclaimer and CopyrightFeedbackWeight Loss and Obesity Informational PostersWe are currently working on a number of posters. Links to them will be provided below as they become available.The Aspects of Obesity - see the whole field of Obesity and Weight Loss in one graphicWeight Loss Methods, Products & Services - see how all the approaches cluster around common themesWeight Loss / Obesity Time lineAvoiding Portion Size Pitfalls (poster is on pages 2 & 3) by the Center for Disease Control (CDC)Understanding Obesity Poster available for free from the Obesity Action CoalitionTeachers Get Young Teens to Draw Their Own Posters an activity from Science UPD8 a supplier of prepackaged educational lessons in Europe. Details are near the bottom of the pageWeight Loss Program ReviewsWe are holding some materials for further development here and expect to move them to their own page and expand them in the future.Consumer SearchConsumer Reports Rates Diets for Nutrition and Effectiveness June 2005. This report is also covered on WebMD.Discussion of Other Sites Reviewing Weight Loss Programs Consumer SearchFinding a Weight Loss Program That Works for You Federal Trade Commission; Partnership for Healthy Weight ManagementEvaluating Weight Control Programs several resources identified by the US Dept of Agriculture's National Agriculture Library.Systematic Review: An Evaluation of Major Commercial Weight Loss Programs in the United States. AG Tsai and TA Wadden. Annals of Internal Medicine. Vol.142. No.1. Pgs. 56-66. (Jan 2005).Evaluated the largest self help and commercial programs against criteria proposed by an expert panel for the Federal Trade Commission. With the exception of one trial of Weight Watchers, the use of these programs was found to be suboptimal.Economic Costs of ObesityThe Impact of Morbid Obesity on the State Economy: An Initial Investigation. EE Frezza, MS Wachtel and BT Ewing. Surgery for Obesity and Related Disorders. Vol.2. No.5. Sep-Oct 2006. Economic costs for the State of New Mexico were estimated from bariatric surgery demographics at a large univeristy hospital. Total labor income impact was estimated at $200 million, 7,300 jobs are cost, plus state and local taxes are lowered by $48 million. Total impact of $1.3 billion amounts to about 2.5 percent of the gross state product.Obesity in the Workplace by Pfizer. December 2004. Nice easy reading piece laying out workplace issues with obesity.Overweight and Obesity: The Economic Consequences Center for Disease Control (CDC). This article is a bit old, but still identifies several areas of the cost spectrum.National Medical Spending Attributable to Overweight and Obesity: How Much, and Who’s Paying?. EA Finkelstein, IC Fiebelkorn, G Wang. Health Affairs (Web Only) 14 May 2003. W3 Pgs.219-226. Obese adults under age 65 were found to incur annual medical expenses $395 higher than those of normal weight. Combined expenditures related to overweight and obese attibutable medical spending totalled 9.1 percent of annual U.S. medical expenditures in 1998 and may have been as high as $78.5 billion (in 1998 dollars).Costs of Obesity by the American Obesity Association. - indicates the portion of several chronic disease costs due to obesity.Moderate and Severe Obesity Have Large Differences in Health Care Costs. Obesity Research. Vol.12. No.12. (Dec 2004) Pgs.1936-1943. Studies the costs associated with individuals in each group and compares them.State-Level Estimates of Annual Medical Expenditures Attributable to Obesity. Obesity Research. Vol.12. No.1. (Jan 2004) Pgs.18-24. it includes a nice map of estimated expenditures by state. NOTE these are expenditures born by the state though Medicare and Medicade and do not include other obesity expenses.Impact of Obesity on Rising Medical Spending. Kenneth E. Thorpe, Curtis S. Florence, David H. Howard, and Peter Joski. Health Affairs. 20 Oct. 2004.The Association Between Body Mass and Health Care Expenditures. Kim A Heithoff, Brian J. Cuffel, Sean Kenedy, and Jodi Peters. Clinical Therapeutics. Vol.19. No.4. 1997. Pgs. 811-820. Full text available on Science Direct. Pg. 817 presents a nice chart on BMI vs. annual health care costs for an individual (separate curves for males and females) in 1993. The info is dated, but the shape of the curves are very interesting.An Economic Analysis of Adult Obesity. Brief review of a paper by similar title by The National Bureau of Economic Research.Health Insurance and the Obesity Externality Jay Bhattacharya and Neeraj Sood of RAND. Working Paper. WR-340. January 2006. 48 page paper indicating they estimate a health plan with a coisurance rate of 17.5 percent would incur enough extra expense from the obese people, to force the plan to add about $150 per person in the plan (non-obese people would be paying an additional $150 each).Diminishing Returns: The Costs and Benefits of Improving Health. Kevin Murphy and Robert Topel. Perspectives in Biology and Medicine. Vol.46. No.3. Supplement. Summer 2003. Pgs.S108-S128. Available on Project MUSE. While this paper does not specifically address obesity, it lays some nice groundwork for evaluating return on investment of investments in public health, including research and how payback depends on the age groups of those impacted.Economic Evaluation of Weight Loss Interventions in Overweight and Obese Women. Larissa Roux, Karen M. Kuntz, Cam Donaldson, and Sue J. Goldie. Obesity Research. Vol.14. Pgs.1093-1106. June 2006. A three-component intervention of diet, exercise, and behavior modification cost $12,600 per quality-adjusted life year gained compared with routine care. All other strategies were either less effective and more costly or less effective and less cost effective.The Economic Impact of Obesity on Automobile Fuel Consumption. Sheldon Jacobsen and Laura McLay. Higher average driver and passenger weights were used with vehicle type, vehicle mileage, and additional information to calculate the amount of addition fuel consumed by non commercial cars and light trucks. Approximately 272 million additional gallons of fuel are consumed annually due to body weight gains since 1988, or 938 million additional gallons per year due to bodyweight gains since 1960.The Financial Reality of Overeating. Rachel Close and Dale Schoeller. (Univ of Wisconsin-Madison). Journal of the American College of Nutrition. Vol.25. No.3. Pgs. 203-209. (2006). Fast food meals can be upsized for about $67 cents but added health care costs along with added fuel costs (heavier in car) are much, much greater. An interesting study that was strongly covered in the media.The Cost of Obesity Among Full Time Employees. E. Finklestein, IC Fiebelkorn, and G. Wang. American Journal of Health Promotion. Vol.20. No.1. Pgs. 45-51. Sept-Oct 2005. Overweight and Obesity attibutable costs were found to be $175 per year per male overweight employee to $2,485 per year per grade II obese female employee in two nationally representative datasets. Total costs due to obesity for a firm with 1,000 employees were estimated at $285,000 per year.Obesity: America's Economic Epidemic. The Main Street Economist. Vol.1 No.2. (2006). Reports our good economy may have helped get us into this problem (more money leads to more eating out and pre-packaged foods that tend to have high calories. But now the problem is leading us into a financial crisis due to the costs required to treat obesity and its related diseases, especially rural areas where obesity spending represents a higher percentage of total health care costs. A nice, easy to read article on the economic impact of obesity.Food LabelsThe Food and Drug Aministration's (FDA) 1990 Nutrition Labeling and Education Act (NLEA) launched the contents panel many of us are familiar with today. A parallel labeling proposal from the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) of the U.S. Department of Agriculture covered meat and poultry. Both were initially scheduled to go into effect in 1993, however due to industry claims of "undue economic hardship" the NLEA was delayed for one year to May 8, 1993 and the FSIS coverage of meat and poultry was delayed for similar reasons till June 1994. A nice history of the development of these regulations is provided by the FDA on their Good Reading for Good Eating page, as well as of the label itself on their The Food Label page.In December 2006, the "National Uniformity for Food Act" (H.R. 2699) is being considered by Congress. This bill provides a national uniform standard for direct food additives and warning labels of FDA-regulated products and is supported by the food industry. A white paper titled, %20and%20their%20various types is provided by the American Society for Bariatric Surgery.A Complete Guide to Obesity Surgery: Everything You Need to Know About Weight Loss Surgery and How to Succeed by Byran G. Woodward is available online via Google Books.A Description of Morbidly Obese State Employees Requesting a Bariatric Operation. Louis F. Martin, Anna Paone Lundberg, Francine Juneau, William J. Raum, and Sandra J. Hartman. Presented at the 62nd Annual Meeting of the Central Surgical Association. Tucson AZ March 10-15, 2005. Journal of Surgery. 2005.06.50. (Oct 2005) Pgs. 690-700. A study of State of Louisiana employees requesting bariatric surgery found them requiring 1.4 to 2.8 times the cost of other adult members in the year prior to their request for surgery, suggesting the operation would rapidly pay for itself.Surgery Decreases Long Term Mortality, Morbity, and Health Care Use in Morbidly Obese Patients. Nicolas V. Christou, John S. Sampalis, Moishe Liberman, Didier Look, Stephane Auger, Alexander P.H. McLean, and Lloyd D. MacLean. Annals of Surgery. Vol.240. No.3. Pgs. 416-424. (Sept 2004). 1118 patients had bariatric surgery at Magil University Health Center in Quebec Canada between 7 Jan 1986 and 8 Jun 2002. Teh Canadian Provincial Health Insurance database allowed all their health care needs to be followed quite closely. The final sample included 1035 bariatric surgery patients and 5746 matched controls (people in similar situations, but not undergoing bariatric surgery). Some patients have been followed up for 16 years. Significant and sustained weight loss due to weight loss surgery up through 16 years was verified by the study. The risk of 5 year mortality was reduced by 89 percent. 5 year total medical costs for those undergoing surgery were considerably lower than those of the control group EVEN with the cost of surgery and followup included.Several years ago, many extermely obese people had their jaws wired shut and relied on protein drinks through a straw for nourishment. This is more technically known as "maxillomandibular fixation". A few papers on this process are below.Maintenance of Weight Loss in Obese Patients After Jaw Wiring. J S Garrow and G T Gardiner. BMJ (British Medical Journal) (Clin Res Ed). 1981 March 14. Vol.282(6267). Pgs.858-860. Patients were known to frequently rapidly regain any weight loss from this procedure, so after their jaws were freed, a group of them were also fitted with a 2 mm nylon cord around their waist to remind them of their diet. This group gained much less weight after the procedure.Weight Loss and Obesity MarketingWe are holding some materials for further development here and expect to move them to their own page and expand them in the future.Commentary: There is a Public Health Crisis - Its Not Fat of the Body But Fat in the Mind and the Fat of Profits. Susie Orbach. International Journal of Epidemiology. Vol.35 (2006) . Pgs. 67-68.The U.S. is now exporting its "body insecurity" to the rest of the world. Many in other countries previously oblivious to their alleged imperfections are taking drastic actions to change their bodies and appearances.She cites another author who refers to the marketing of these products and service as "Obesity Inc."Dispensing with the Truth: The Victims, the Drug Companies, and the Dramatic Story Behind the Battle Over Fen-Phen. A. Mundy. New York: St Martin's Press, 2002.Food Marketing to Children and Youth: Threat or Opportunity Board on Children, Youth and Families (BOCYF), Food and Nutrition Board (FNB), and the Institute of Medicine (IOM). National Academies Press. Full text available free online.Obesity Business First Business Morning News. 4 minute videoWharton UniversityHow Does Drug and Supplement Marketing Affect a Healthy Lifestyle. Lisa E. Bolton, Americus Reed II, Kevin G. Volpp, and Katrina Armstrong. Wharton University.Food Fight: Obesity Raises Difficult Marketing Questions. published in Knowledge@Wharton. 9 March 2005. Reports several recent developments surrounding junk food, advertising and obesity.The Alliance for American Advertising was announced in the Wall Street Journal on January 26, 2005. This new group of a few major food companies was formed to defend corporations' First Amendment rights to advertise to children.Nutrition Business Journal trade journal for weight loss dietary product manufacturersWeight Loss Products and Programs by Colorado State University22 Nov 2006 Wall Street Journal "Marketing New Antismoking Pill Poses Challenges for Pfizer" reports the public's memory of hundreds of failed antismoking aids that promised success in the past will taint the field for Chantix, a drug receiving FDA approval this past May. Chantix appears to truely hold greater promise in helpfing people stop smoking. Pfizer's approach to marketing is strongly being guided by their knowledge many potential customers are aware of many failed weight loss products in the past. If and When a weight loss product with truely revolutionary success is found, much might be learned from the marketing approach used by Pfizer for this drug as it will face a similar situation.Food Marketing & Obesity Fact Sheet Campaign for a Commercial Free Childhood.Obesity / Food Marketing news clips collected by Campaign for a Commercial Free ChildhoodWeight Loss and Obesity HumorWe are holding some materials for further development here and expect to move them to their own page and expand them in the future.Political and News Weight Loss Cartoons from Cartoon StockObesity Cartoons from well known comic strips by the Cartoonist GroupFat Albert 2004 Bill Cosby movie.Three Fat Women of Antibes a humorous chamber opera about three obese women trying to lose weight. It was also made in to a TV movie in 1969 by the same title.Some well know cartoon /comic characters with weight loss challengesFat AlbertWimpy (from Popeye)Baby HueyCookie Monster from Sesame Street note - cookie monster has softened his ways due to health awareness. Wikipedia has a nice story of Cookie Monster's history and development.SuperSize Me Game eat as many burgers as possible.Obesity AssociationsThe Obesity Society NAASOAmerican Obesity Associationcombined effort between the The Endocrine Society and The Hormone Foundation-American Society for Bariatric SurgeryAssociation for the Study of Obesity a U.K. organizationEuropean Society for the Study of Obesity EASOInternational Association for the Study of ObesityBritish Obesity Surgery Patient Association supports those considering or recovering from surgery for obesityObesity Action Coalition an advocacy groupObesity in AmericaAnti Obesity Commercials and Positive MessagesThunder Thighs 30 second videoAdvertising, Marketing and the Media": Improving Messages Fact Sheet. Sept 2004 by the Insitute of Medicine, of the National Academies. Promotes guidelines for marketing and advertising to minimize risk of obesity to children and youth, and for the promotion of public health issues.Some People Are ExtremeMost weight loss and obesity gages, suggestions, and approaches are for "normal" people. Those with extreme physiques (very tall, very short, very muscular, large rib caged individuals, amputees, and others far outside the "norm" will not be properly "labeled" by BMI, by measuring around their waist, height/weight charts or other similar tests.Some people have hormonal or glandular problems that lead to obesity. Their needs and challenges will be different than typical people. For example, Leptin, a hormone, helps regulate weight homeostasis (helps us stay around a constant weight). A very small percentage of the population has a gene mutation and produce no leptin. These individuals eat frequently and may be grossly overweight at a young age. Some people have problems related to Thyroid hormone which also important in preventing obesity.Others are elite athletes, normal people doing abnormal jobs, and many more.Mission of the Weight Loss Information CenterHelp people lead healthier lives by:Providing weight loss educational materialsReviewing weight loss plans and methodsOrganizing existing weight loss materials into a more useful formatCreating links to existing high quality weight loss materialsCovering obesity from new angles and perspectivesProviding weight loss and obesity postersPosting healthy lifestyle tipsCreating helpful online tools for making good weight loss decisionsProviding lively, engaging, thought provoking materialsObesity PolicyMany people are trying to steer government "policy" decisions to help reduce obesity and its related problems.National Alliance for Nutrition and ActivityHealth Affairs "the policy journal of the health sphere"U.S. Surgeon General's Call to Action to Prevent and Decrease Overweight and Obesity 2001. This document provides considerable information in a relatively easy to read style, plus also outlines policy type items the govenment is considering.F as in Fat: How Obesity Policies are Failing in America 2006 by Trust for America's Health.Accelerating Progress on Obesity Berkely Media Studies Group (BMSG) analyzes other policy efforts in the past (tobacco, alcohol, firearms safety, traffic safety) and tries to determine how best to use that knowledge to press forward toward obesity solutions.Some Causes / Drivers of Rising Obesity LevelsSeveral things and combinations of events have led to rapidly growing obesity levels in the United States. Some suggested by others and by us are listed below.More restaurants per capita (they are closer to you and more of them than there used to be.)Rushed lifestyle leads to more "eat out", "carry out" or "eat on the run" meals.The large Stop Smoking efforts of recent years have been at least partially successful, but many smokers stop smoking and then start eating too much and become obeseSnacks have extremely high calorie density and are very satisfying and habit forming.Characters (such as Disney characters) have been used to promote unhealthy food choices in the pastTechnological change has reduced the amount of physical labor required at work and at homeVideo Games & Television keep kids (and many adults) indoors and contributes to snackingMove from "Household Production" of food to "Market Production" (buy food at supermarkets instead of raising / growing it yourself)Growth of the female work force (working moms have less time to prepare nutritious meals and fall back to prepared meals or fast food that is not as healthy)Marriage market is stacked against black women (young marriageable black men are hard to find) resulting in many black women not finding an incentive to control their weight (Reference C. Mullen "Teenage Childbearing" PhD Dissertation Univ. Chicago 1998).We drive everywhere. Many European cities were designed for walking. Plus gas costs less here.Food is cheaper in the United States than in Europe.Higher quality television programs in the U.S. attract more viewer hours than lower quality programs in Europe.Soft drinks, soft drinks in schools, vending machinesBoredom of desk and computer jobs encourages snackingLarger sizes of snack packages (often labeled as several servings, but eaten in one sitting by one person because its in the package)Repeated cycles of weight loss and weight gain make each next attempt to lose weight more difficultProliferation of Microwaves encourages us to nuke prepared foods that may not be healthy for usWhat Can I Do to Help Fight the Problem of ObesitySeveral Adovocacy Groups promote legislation, awareness, research, and educational issues surrounding obesity. Pick one, become involved, and help solve this problem.Take Action by the Center for Science in the Public Interest and their companion site, National Alliance for Nutrition and ActivityAmerican Obesity Association advocacy pageCenter for Healthy Weight Advocacy @ Stanford, they focus on childhood and adolsescent obesity and accept donationsTrust for America's Health advocates a range of health issues including obesityThe Obesity SocietyNational Recreation and Park AssociationRails to Trails Conservancy promotes turning old railroad beds into trailsPE4Life promotes PE in schoolsAction for Healthy KidsCalifornia Center for Public Health AdvocacyNational Ceter for Bicycling and Walking promotes bike friendly, walkable communitiesSupport local efforts to build community parks, repair and extend sidwalks, built and maintain walking trails, bike trails, etc. Go walking with a friend, teach a kid to ride a bike, throw out your kids video games,If you have a family member or friend trying to lose weight, point them at Small Steps, a nice site by the U.S. Dept of Health & Human Services with many ideas for small steps toward a healthier life.Plus, you can always check back in at our site to keep up with the latest developments in the war on obesity.Obesity is Leading Cause of Death in the U.S. - Or Is It?A 2004 study on the Actual Causes of Death in the United States, 2000 (Journal of the American Medical Association Vol.291. No.10. March 10, 2004 Pgs. 1238-1245) found "poor diet and physical inactivity" (labeled obesity by many) resulting in 400 000 preventable deaths per year, just slightly behind tobacco at 435,000 preventable deaths per year. 15,000 of these deaths are attributed to poor diet and physical activity, the remainer are attributed to overweight and obese (which typically results from poor diet and physical inactivity). Full text is available free from JAMA if you registerConsiderable challenge to the data and discussion surrounded this announcement which then later resulted in a correction being published in the Journal of the American Medical Association ( Vol. 293 No. 3, January 19, 2005).A Washington Post article, "CDC Study Overestimates Deaths from Obesity" published 24 Nov 2004 reports "Center for Consumer Freedom", a group funded in part by the restaraunt industry, is happy to see the CDC restate the numbers. The original March 2004 paper estimated poor diet and physical inactivity caused 400,000 deaths in 2000, up from 300,000 a decade earlier and pointed out that if trends continued, deaths could reach 500,000 next year and overtake tobacco as the number one cause. The restatement of death count is not yet finalized, but conversations with the Wall Street Journal have placed it at about 80,000 deaths or 20 percent. Dixie Snyder, chief scientist at the CDC reports the error does not undermine the final conclusion that increasing numbers of Amercans are overweight resulting in a major and increasing common public health problem.An abstract of the original JAMA article that includes values for other leading causes of preventable deaths (including the corrected value for poor diet and physical inactivity) is available from PubMed.Some in-depth analysis of the JAMA article that started this debate focusing on "exclusions" is provided by Katherine M. Flegal in "Supplemental Analyses for Estimates of Excess Deaths Associated with Underweight, Overweight, and Obesity in the U.S. Population" on the National Center for Health Statistics web site.Placing Obesity in Perspective With Other Health ProblemsWe are working on trying to better place obesity in perspective with other health issues so it can be better understood. Some materials we may use in doing that are being gathered below.Prescription for a Healthy Nation: A New Approach to Improving Lives by Fixing Our Everyday World. T. Farley and DA Cohen. RAND. The URL they use to host this site is interesting, healthscaping.org. America spends twice as much on healthcare as any other nation, why are we so sick? Injuries and chronic diseases are by products of the way we live.Weight Loss and Obesity LinksOverweight and Obesity: Home Center for Disease Control (CDC)State Based CDC Obesity ProgramsHow Healthy is America 29th report from the Health, United States series by the Center for Disease Control (CDC). Thi volume may be helpful in putting obesity in perspective with other health issues. A full text pdf copy of the entire book is also online, note it is about 10 Megabytes in size.Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994 regulates dietary supplements.Calorie King Food Database food calorie content for thousands of foods and restaurant itemsHealthy People 201 a U.S. govenment health promotion effort began in 2000Small Steps nice site for children, teens and adults wanting to make small steps toward a healthier lifeThe Biggest Looser NBC TV Show aired in 2006 pitting obese contestants against each other to loose the greatest percentage of body weightNutritionA healthy, nutritious diet is obviously a large part of the obesity equation."Energy Value of Food". Chapter 4 of Exercise Physiology; Energy, Nutrition, and Human Performance, 5th edition. An evaluation copy is online. This chapter does a nice job of covering energy in foods.Coming SoonOur site is rapidly expanding. Other topics currently under development by the Weight Loss Information Center include discussions of Weight Loss Quality of Life Issues, Coverage of the Super Obese, a Blog presenting recent events and products in the news, Examining the medical costs of obesity to us as individuals and to those around us, Discussing how obesity can lead to many other medical complications, Obesity and Health Insurance, Why certain people drop out of weight loss programs, predicting who will drop out, Weight Loss Program Reviews, and even more weight loss topics.Other topics we are considering exploring include velocity, acceleration and trajectory of a person's bodyweight, applying the engineering safety hierarchy to obesity as well as the three E's.FEEDBACKPlease let us know how we are doing at answering your questions, if you like what you see, if you have any suggestions, or if you would just like to drop us a line. E-mail us at polsong@virtualpet.com.Secret. 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Dr. Lucero: Born and raised in Colorado. + Graduated: Univ. of Colorado Medical School + Internship and Residency in Family Practice and Pediatrics --------- At University of South Alabama + Over 15 years experience in weightloss (Bariatrics) + Member since 1996: American Society of Bariatric Physicians + Expert in medical and //or nutritional weightloss + Member of AMA and Medical Society of Northern Virginia + Chmn. Membership Com.--Medical Society of No. Virginia + Board Related Categories: Health > Alternative > Herbs > Materia Medica > Hoodia Gordonii (6) Health > Fitness (1240) Health > Nutrition (663) Home > Cooking > Special Diets (260)
Web Pages
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AOL Diet & Fitness - http://diets.aol.com/ Tips, plans and tools for dieting and fitness.

Calculate your Body Mass Index - http://www.nhlbisupport.com/bmi/ National Institute of Health (NIH) page uses height and weight (english or metric) to determine amount of body fat.

Weightfocus - http://www.weightfocus.com A comprehensive resource for people interested in practical weight management information, including healthy eating, sensible dieting tips, nutrition, and weight loss maintenance.

CalorieKing.com - http://www.calorieking.com/ A diet portal featuring free diet plans and programmes with a powerful online diet diary.

FitDay.com - http://www.fitday.com Free online diet and fitness journal. Input foods, activities, and goals to create individual progress reports.

Weight loss Information - http://www.intense-workout.com/weight_loss.html Including everything you need to know from exercises, to diet tips, and motivation.

Caloriesperhour - http://www.caloriesperhour.com/ Provides calculators for activities and foods, as well as diet and weight loss tips, and tutorial.

Calorie Counter - http://www.caloriecounter.co.uk Lose weight through healthy eating and exercise. Support, diet tips and chat room.

CalorieLab.com - http://www.calorielab.com/ Weight loss and calorie calculators and information.

Weight Watchers International - http://www.weight-watchers.com/ Official site providing information about health, nutrition, dieting, exercise and fitness.

Calorie-Count.com - http://www.calorie-count.com/ Offers a searchable directory of nutrition facts and printable food labels. Includes a daily calorie requirement tool to determine daily calorie needs.

MedicineNet.com - http://www.medicinenet.com/weight_management/focus.htm Includes information on therapies, prevention and healthy living.

Weight Loss for Good - http://www.weightlossforgood.co.uk/ Offers a variety of online tools, diet and exercise tips, articles and alternatives to lose weight.

Peoples Choice of Ideal Body Weight - http://www.halls.md/ideal-weight/people.htm Study shows that people's idea of their ideal body weight, depends on their Age and current Weight.

Calorie Database - http://www.caloriedatabase.com/ Contains a wealth of nutritional information on individual food items, with detailed breakdown of calories, carb, fat, and various vitamins and minerals.

Food and Diet - http://www.foodanddiet.com/ An information portal for diets, recipes, fitness, and support to help lose weight and get in shape.

Weight Loss For All - http://www.weightlossforall.com Provides weight loss solutions through education. Offers articles on exercise, diet, fitness, weight loss tips, and metabolism.

Overweight .net - http://www.overweight.net Provides weight management resources, tools, and recipes.

Diet Tips - http://www.diettips.net Has articles, links, and reviews about dieting, nutrition, exercise, and other heath related issues. Contribute an article to be considered for posting.

Weigh-Less - http://www.weighless.co.za To attain and maintain the ideal weight, the healthy way. Offers message boards, chat, exercise, food for the soul, recipes and success stories.

Eat Fat and Grow Slim - http://www.ourcivilisation.com/fat/ A simple explanation of how most people get fat and how they can easily become slim again without starving or enduring unpleasant diets. Written by Richard Mackarness, M.B.,B.S.

Weight Control - WebMD - http://my.webmd.com/medical_information/condition_centers/weight_control/default.htm Consumer health site written and reviewed by WebMD doctors.

The Hacker's Diet - http://www.fourmilab.to/hackdiet/www/hackdietf.html Billed as "how to lose weight and hair through stress and poor nutrition," this is a serious weight loss program written from an engineering and management perspective.

Weight Awareness - http://www.weightawareness.com A health information portal with information on surgical weight loss solutions. Includes directory of plastic surgeons and gastric bypass surgeons.

Weight Loss Index - http://www.weightloss-index.com/ Provides information on weight loss, diet, fitness, health, and supplements.

The-Zone-Diet-Plan.com - http://www.the-zone-diet-plan.com/ Provides information about the Zone diet plan. Includes an introduction, getting started, and the science behind the plan.

Weightcheck - http://www.weightcheck.com Online weight loss and exercise advice with a personal advisor for motivation and help to achieve your weight goal.

Weight Loss Management Center - http://www.lifeclinic.com/focus/nutrition/weight-loss.asp Expert-reviewed articles offer tips and guidance on effective weight loss planning. Also includes a free question-and-answer service with registered dietitians.

Nutri.info - http://www.nutri.info Download the Agile Body Mass Index Calculator 1.0 to calculates BMI using height, weight and gender.

Weight Management Center - http://www.lifeclinic.com/focus/nutrition/weightManagement.asp Expert-reviewed articles offer tips and guidance on effective weight loss planning. Also includes a free question-and-answer service with registered dietitians.

Zone Diet Info - http://www.zonedietinfo.com/ Offers tips, frequently asked questions, and menus for the Zone Diet.

NutriDiary - http://www.nutridiary.com Free food and exercise logging web application that tracks, analyzes, and graphs calories in, calories out, nutrients, weight, body fat, and BMI. Also allows weight goal and nutrition target setting.

BBC Online Health - Fighting Fat - http://www.bbc.co.uk/health/fightingfat/ Details on how to keep to a healthy weight, eat well and reduce your risk of heart disease, diabetes and other health problems.

South Beach Diet Guide - http://www.southbeachdietguide.com/ Offers practical information on getting started with the SBD, plus personal experiences, a recipe exchange, and public discussion forums.

Am I Fat? - http://www.am-i-fat.com/ Find out if you are overweight and what can be done about it. Includes an overview of obesity, weight tables, calorie requirements, and a forum.

Weightloss Resource - http://www.weightloss.com Includes diet plans, pills, and how to talk to your doctor. Features a body mass index and other helpful tools.

Winning with Wendy - http://winningwithwendy.tripod.com Motivation and support for Weight Watchers members. Includes Winning Points recipes, tips, and links.

Weight Loss Made Simple - http://www.geocities.com/cyberbear613/weightloss/weightloss.htm Offers sound advice in fitness, dieting, exercise, and motivation.

Dr. B's Weight Loss Network - http://weightloss.beldholm.com/ Written by a doctor and includes sections on cosmetic surgery, diet and nutrition recommended reading.

Weight Loss Help - http://www.thecolumn.org Summaries, reviews, and recipes for weight loss programs. Provides information for and feedback from dieters on what works and what doesn't. Includes a support forum.

Weight Loss Products Comparison - http://www.productscomparison.com/ Introductory information on a variety of products.

1 Stop Weight Loss - http://www.1-stopweightloss.com/ Provides information on programs, ebooks, articles, diets, tips and tools.

CBC Consumers: Dying to be Thin - http://www.cbc.ca/consumers/indepth/dietdrug/ An in depth look at the risks associated with diet drugs.

Lose Body Weight - http://www.lose-body-weight.com Articles describe changes in lifestyle that will assist with weight management.

Free-WeightLoss.com - http://www.free-weightloss.com Offers dieters free information and resources including chat, links, and professional articles.

List of Carbohydrate Foods - http://www.carbohydratefood.net/ Contains a searchable database for the effective carbohydrate, fat and calorie content of a large number of food items. It is designed for those following the Atkins diet.

Calorie Management - http://caloriemanagement.primarylynx.com Offers menu tools for weight loss and control for health, for life.

Free Diet Tips - http://www.freediettips.com Resource for weight loss and exercise information, and low fat recipes.

Weight Loss: About.com - http://weightloss.about.com/health/weightloss/ Links to information about diets, emotional eating, fitness, nutrition, cooking and more, as well as weekly feature articles.

CBC Witness: Diet Wars - http://www.tv.cbc.ca/witness/dietwar/index.html The battle between millionaire diet experts and the stunning revelation that 95% of diets do not work.

Prevention.com: Weight Loss - http://www.prevention.com/cda/channel2002/1,4745,679,00.html Free diet plans and fitness tools to lose weight safely like calorie counters, low fat recipes, personality quiz and weight loss forums.

24 Hour Fitness - http://www.24hourfitness.com/html/diets/ Offers a summary of ten of the most popular diets on the market today, the benefits and disadvantages of each plan and whether the plan can be maintained for life.

Living Lean Today - http://www.livingleantoday.com/ A portal to weight loss sites. Links to professional and personal weight loss sites, fitness links, health columnists, healthy recipes and other weight loss resources.

John La Puma, M.D. - http://drjohnlapuma.com/ Food and medical information, and recipes, from a physician and professionally trained chef.

LivingHeart.com - http://www.livingheart.com/default.htm Individualized diets to lower weight, cholesterol, triglyceride, blood pressure, and blood sugar. Tips, books, online nutrient analysis of your diet, plus nutrition counseling with a dietitian.

If Not Dieting, Then What - Dr. Rick Kausman - http://www.ifnotdieting.com.au Provides help and support for people to achieve and maintain a healthy, comfortable weight without being deprived of food or losing quality of life.

One Fat Chef - http://www.geocities.com/chefbland/ Contains low fat recipes, weight loss journal and progress, nutrition and exercise information plus the famous one fat chef. Browse through the free online healthy recipes for cooking ideas.

Staying Slim - http://www.StayingSlim.com/ Find resources for staying healthy and fit. Content includes news, success stories, articles, a forum, and diets.

Keys To Successful Weight Loss - http://www.keystoweightloss.homestead.com/Index.html Important keys to successfully losing weight from a doctor plus links to useful weight loss, nutrition, recipe, exercise and eating disorder information.

Fad Diets - http://www.webterrace.com/fad/ Outlines the requirements of each diet, and offers suggestions for making healthy choices.

Calorielator - http://members.verizon.net/%7ebvsheela/Calorielator.html This is an on-line audio-visual tool to estimate the calories needed to maintain one's current weight and, if currently overweight, to estimate the number of days it takes to reach the ideal weight by reducing the food intake appropriately.

Weight Loss Tips - http://www.advancedweightloss2.homestead.com/ Ten points to help you from Clinical Psychologist, Thomas D. Yarnell, Ph.D.

Body Mass Index Calculators - http://www.halls.md/body-mass-index/ Offers tables for men and women, with adjustments for older and younger individuals. Includes explanation of results.

Diet and Fitness by iVillage.com - http://diet.ivillage.com/ Diet tips, information on how to maintain a healthy lifestyle, health calculator, find a workout, keyboard yoga and online chats and discussions.

Practical Weight Loss - http://www.practicalweightloss.com/ Calorie and BMI calculators.

Dieting Review - http://www.dieting-review.com/ Reviews the general guidelines and the positive and negative aspects of most popular diets. Contains a selection of weight loss tools and a forum.of Directors--Medical Society of No. Virginia

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