Most Americans Want Public Policies to Prevent Obesity
January 05, 2007
HealthDay News -- A large majority of Americans
say they support changes in public policy to stem the rising
tide of obesity among adults, a new survey shows....
There is a lot of support for employer and
health policies aimed at preventing obesity,"
said lead researcher Bernard Fuemmeler, an assistant professor
in the department of community and family medicine at Duke
University Medical Center, in Durham, N.C
This study provides tangible evidence that
people support wide-scale policy changes that can affect obesity
in the U.S.," Fuemmeler added.
Approximately 60 million American adults
are obese, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention. In 1998, Americans spent about 9 percent of
all medical expenses on problems linked to being overweight
or obese.
In addition, 73 percent said they'd support
government incentives for companies that reduced the cost
of health insurance for employees who had healthy lifestyles
and shed extra pounds. Seventy-two percent said they would
support government policies requiring insurance companies
to cover obesity treatment and prevention programs.
There is growing public advocacy for these
kinds of policy changes," Fuemmeler said. "There
is also advocacy in the research community for large-scale
policy changes. With some push, we might be able to get some
changes that would help us better address the obesity
epidemic in the country.
But one expert said it will take more than
policy changes to get Americans to eat better and exercise
more.
Source from:
http://news.yahoo.com
|
