In a shocking new study published online in Pediatrics this week, researchers found that from 2000 to 2008, the number of teenagers aged 12 to 19 with pre-diabetes or diabetes increased from 9% to 23%.
Yikes, one in four kids have either pre-diabetes or diabetes – what I like to call diabesity. How did this happen? Just 15 years ago, less than 3% of new cases of childhood diabetes were Type 2 (or what we used to call adult onset), now it is nearly 50% of all new cases of diabetes in kids.
In this study of 3,383 children, the most shocking finding was not just the exploding rates of pre-diabetes and Type 2 diabetes in children, which alone should make us all stop whatever we are doing and become health activists, it was the fact that 13% of kids of normal weight were either pre-diabetic or diabetic.
We need to stand up in our homes, communities and schools and create healthy environments for kids. We need to take back our kid’s taste buds, our kitchens and our homes, which have been hijacked by the food industry and ban anything except real food.
We need to lobby to change food marketing to kids, tax soda, limit access to junk food in our schools and neighborhoods, and protect our children, their future, our global economic competitiveness, and our national security.
Sick kids have been shown to have an achievement gap doing less well in school and throughout their lives. And a full 75% of military recruits are not fit to serve.
Calls for more exercise will be heard because no one opposes more exercise. It doesn’t decrease profits for anyone! But a kid would have to run 4 miles a day for one week to burn off one fast food meal. You can’t exercise your way out of a bad diet.
Michelle Obama’s laudable initiative should not be called “Let’s Move” it should be called “Let’s Eat Real Food.” The food industry needs to be called to task, exposed, and severely regulated to halt this epidemic.
Better to have a nanny state than a failed state crippled by the costs of obesity and diabetes with a population that is sick and disabled. When one in three Medicare dollars is spent on Type 2 diabetes, and we will spend $3.4 trillion over the next ten years to treat pre-diabetes and Type 2 diabetes, incremental changes will not suffice.
Personal responsibility is not the answer. Is a six year old with a fatty liver, diabetes, and high blood pressure to blame for his or her condition?
Yes, the explosion of obesity, pre-diabetes and diabetes in kids is a national crisis. But something else was even more troubling to me in this study. Something that is not in the media reports, but I found it in the fine print in the study.
It was this.
The kids who were normal weight ALSO had higher rates of diabetes and cardiac risk factors. In fact a full 37% of normal weight kids had one or more cardiovascular risk factors such as high blood pressure or high cholesterol. Ponder this; of the skinny kids:
- 18% had elevated blood pressure
- 13% had elevated blood sugar (pre-diabetes or diabetes)
- 10% had elevated cholesterol
But isn’t being overweight the cause of high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes? Well yes. But here’s the rub. You don’t have to be overweight to have high blood pressure, high cholesterol, pre-diabetes or diabetes.
This is as true for adults as it is for children. While most of those overweight in this country have diabesity (pre-diabetes or diabetes), which is what actually causes high blood pressure and cholesterol, so do 40% of the skinny people.
They are in fact skinny fat people. They are normal weight, but metabolically obese with all the same risks of disease and death as the obese. I was just shocked to see this was true in kids as well. One in seven normal weight kids has pre-diabetes or Type 2 diabetes.
How does this happen? It is not just too many calories, it is about the type, quality, and source of those calories.
The single biggest myth held fast by physicians, nutritionists, government bodies, and the media (as was shown clearly in the recent HBO special The Weight of the Nation co-sponsored with the Institute of Medicine, National Institutes of Health, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention) is that all calories are created equal.
Just eat less and exercise more. Balance calories in/calories out. It is just physics – who can argue with Newton and the first law of thermodynamics.
Biology is more complex. In a vacuum all calories are the same. Burn 1,000 calories of Oreo cookies and 1,000 calories of broccoli in a lab and they release the same amount of energy. So they are the same, right? True, but only in a vacuum; not when they are processed by your metabolism.
In fact, food contains not just calories but more importantly it contains information that controls dozens of hormones, thousands of genes, and tens of thousands of protein networks that control everything from your appetite to the rate of fat burning or storage to cholesterol synthesis and more.
The food industry has created secret combinations of sugar, fat, and salt in junk food that trigger biological addiction – which is why you “can’t just eat one” potato chip, but you can easily just eat one serving of broccoli. Who binges on asparagus? But almost everyone has eaten a whole bag of cookies.
The quality of the food you eat is critically important, independent of the calories. Eating junk will put on junk around your middle – even if it is invisible. We call the fat inside your belly “VAT” or visceral adipose tissue.
And even if you are normal weight, as was the case for many of these children in the study, you can have pre-diabetes or diabetes. You become a skinny fat person.
A surgeon friend of mine recently told me that even in people of normal weight, he found belly’s full of fat – caked around their colon, liver, kidneys, and draped over all of their organs. This is caused by our industrial diet full of high-fructose corn syrup, added sugars, trans-fats, flour, and processed food.
The average American eats 29 pounds of French fries, 23 pounds of pizza, 24 pounds of ice cream and consumes 53 gallons of soda, 24 pounds of artificial sweeteners, 2.736 pounds of salt, and 90,700 mg of caffeine per year. Do we really think we can create health in this toxic environment?
That is why we need to “unjunk” our food, and particularly our children’s food. Yes, it is horrible that in less than a decade we have gone from one in ten kids to almost one in four kids with pre-diabetes or diabetes. Even the skinny kids are affected because of the toxic industrial food-like substances that provide too much energy and not enough good information.
But here’s the problem. We don’t have a coordinated national effort, nor do our elected officials have the political willpower to buck the food industry lobby and protect our children.
In a recommendation issued in 2010, the US Preventive Services Task Force proposed to screen children aged older than 6 years for obesity and refer them to comprehensive, moderate to intense behavioral interventions for weight control.
There are two glaring problems with this strategy. First there are no places to refer these patients because most doctors know almost nothing about nutrition and lifestyle. And our health care system does not have any infrastructure or systems for comprehensive lifestyle interventions.
And second, if kids change and their environment doesn’t they will fail. If they go home to staples of soda, donuts and frozen pizza, and they go to schools with deep fryers and microwaves and walls of junk food, and they live in neighborhoods with convenience stores and fast food outlets but no vegetables or fruit in sight, and their parents don’t know how to cook or teach them how to care for their bodies, how can they succeed?
And if getting together to play with friends means games on Facebook any lifestyle intervention will fail.
Obesity is contagious. It is a social disease. But health is also contagious and we need to start infecting our communities and neighborhoods with health. I encourage each of you to be health activists.
We can’t wait for anyone else to solve this problem – not government or corporations. We need to democratize and decentralize health.
Each of us can make changes in the circle of our own lives where we live, eat, learn, work, play, and pray. I have created a simple website for us all to share our collective intelligence on how to solve this – www.takebackourhealth.org.
Share what you are doing in your homes, in your schools, at work or in our democracy to take back our health – collectively we can solve this. Our children are depending on us!!
Now I’d like to hear from you…
What have you done to create a healthy environment for the children in your community?
Do you know what your children are eating at school or do you pack a healthy lunch for them?
Have you taught your children to eat healthy and how to cook with real food ingredients?
Please leave your thoughts by adding a comment below.
To your good health,
Mark Hyman, MD
I liked this post. I was commonly mistaken as “healthy” and in shape throughout high school and college because of my thin frame. While I didn’t have any severe illnesses, I suffered chronic stomach and digestion issues. I decided two years ago (around age 21) to actually start eating healthy and exercising a few days a week. It’s been a long process, which I document on my blog, but it’s been so lifechanging. I now feel proud of my body, where as before I felt guilty for being thin and doing nothing to deserve it except being born into a certain set of genes. I look forward to the day I can help my children achieve the same goals and instilling healthy habits from an early age.
Finds it funny/sad that studies and information likes this actually SURPRISES people. While scientists and “experts” are doing studies on the statistics of obesity and diabetes, 500 fast restaurants open up. While inventors are coming up with magic pills to combat obesity and diabetes, 100 small farmers are run out of business.
Instead of worrying about numbers focus on action, your kids, and more important yourself! Forget about the past decisions, ignore what the future looks like, and make good DECISIONS IN THE PRESENT!
One in four people will not “like” this status update…
Thank you so much Dr. Hyman! The information you share is a constant call to action. I personally believe strongly in the importance of health and changing the current condition and habits of our society. I grew up with healthy food and a mom who made my lunch everyday. While it wasn’t always the healthiest, it shot school lunch out of the water. As a holistic health coach, I try to help anyone who is willing and ready to listen. I want to live in a happier, healthier world, and like you said it has to start with me and my community. I am a fighter, and I am fighting for a better future.
I couldn’t agree with you more. It’s time to shift away from blaming our “lack of willpower” and ask – no demand that food corporations start thinking more of the health of our children and less of their pockets. And yes, it starts at home. Learn to cook real, whole foods and get your children involved. Demand better food choices in restaurants and supermarkets. Buy less processed foods and rely less on convenience. Join your school’s wellness committee and make suggestions.
We can change our unhealthy environment by demanding it. It just might take time- time we don’t really have.
I have been bringing my neighbor kids down to teach them juicing and raw food preparation of healthy whole foods. I am going to start having juice parties and vegan barbecues too! I suggested vegetable lasagna for a local Red Cross chapter Volunteer dinner and they have served it for the last two years with glowing reviews. Also I have a chef in training at the local Men’s mission interested in making kale salad, bean and sweet potato lasagna, etc. Thank you Dr. Hyman for your great website. I support your efforts to promote healthy lifestyles by eating whole foods! And I get my exercise by biking and walking rescue dogs:)
Dr. Hyman,
Thanks for this article. The statistics are shocking. My husband and I both have type 1 diabetes and we run the diabetes lifestyle magazine ASweetLife, http://www.asweetlife.org. I have been passionately advocating for healthful lifestyle within the diabetes community. I keep hitting walls. Rather than make their focus on eating healthful foods, a large percentage of my community likes to focus on the fact that they CAN eat whatever they like so long as they take their medication. Recently I started a group on Facebook called Sugarless Tuesdays https://www.facebook.com/pages/Sugarless-Tuesdays/279492222122326
I can’t get a following and I feel disillusioned, as this signifies to me that no matter what the statistics say, people don’t want to try to change.
Very good points. Where does regulation start vs. personal responsibilty to feed your children healthy food?
I feel sad for the American children and their future. It is not their fault that they are growing up in a society whose adult members have over decades come to adopt such far-from-natural lifestyles. Actually the entire American system seems to be in the grip of those dedicated to profits and pleasure at any cost. Unfortunately, it is this aspect of the glamorous American lifestyle that continues to attract millions of adherents in other countries (including India), and spreading the lifestyle diseases globally. Dr. Hyman, the world urgently needs many more like you to shake them out of their slumber.
I try to be part of the solution. For example, last year when it was my turn to bring in snack to my daughter’s preschool for the week, I made homemade soup, brought new vegetables, kale chips, things that most kids had not tried before and I tried to make it fun. Here is a blog pots I wrote about making some coconut date balls. I think we all have to try to do what we can and that means making a real effort to make real food and not just running to the warehouse stores to pick up cheap, fake food. Here is link: http://fromprocessedtopure.blogspot.com/2011/04/fancy-fare-for-preschoolers.html
My son is in preschool and although his school follows national dietary guidelines I have been very disappointed in the quality of food he receives. The school doesn’t allow packed lunches, so I have become vocal about the menu and what my son can and cannot have. I have seen improvements, but they are still far behind the curve on serving healthy foods. Last week they were serving a sugary cereal for breakfast and this was allowable according to government standards because it was “whole grain.” While I think food education does begin at home, our government and schools have to become more educated on the impacts of food as well.
At home I buy very little processed foods, only whole grains, fruits, vegetables, and fresh lean meats (poultry and fish). I don’t buy foods with high fructose corn syrup and make healthier versions of popular treats so my son doesn’t feel he’s missing out. For instance, I either buy all fruit popsicles or we make them at home. For a treat I make him whole grain cookies sweetened with Stevia, agave nectar, or honey. We love having what we call “Europen Dinners” where I put fresh fruits, vegetables, healthy cheeses, and hummus on a big platter for us to share while we talk about our day. This gives us a chance to experiment with new food combinations and have some meaningful time with one another while we do it.
Although my son is only 4 we talk about food choices daily so he will understand food’s purpose and how to give his body what it needs to keep him strong and healthy. One way I educate him is by taking him grocery shopping with me. He loves it because he gets to pick out new foods he wants to try and then when we get home he gets to help prepare them.
I appreciate your efforts to eat well, but “whole grain” foods are still very bad for your health and agave nectar is worse for you than High Fructose Corn syrup. You should avoid these things.
Great info and so true. Kids lunches at school are so gross my kids want me to make lunch everyday! I do a basic sandwich, orange and edamame or carrots, and maybe some dark chocolate- drink us a seltzer or water. They are fine with it. If I have processed sugar snacks in house they are like addicts and want to feast all afternoon! Early on I got them to try grilled salmon and broccoli, and now they will order that at a restaurant. Maybe one Shirley Temple.
I hope to work with PTA and maybe a local company in Charlotte to get a salad bar at the schools this Fall.
I would love to see you team up with Dr. David Argus, Lance Armstrong, Dr. William Li (angio.org, eattodefeat), Dr. Terry Walls and other like minded Dr.s and activists to change the tide, build a database of knowledge and save the US from massive healthcare debt. We do not need to be a nanny state but have to educate or we lose as a nation as well as those we love.
For forty years I’ve been reading about health and nutrition. This article is the most concise yet comprehensive statement I’ve come across that points to the biological, environmental, social, health, political, food industry, farming, and medical issues surrounding our health epidemic. It’s short enough that I can send it to my friends and urge them to read it. I would like to be part of a grassroots effort to spread the message of “Let’s Eat Real Food.” Dr. Hyman, please get in touch with Michelle Obama. Let’s work with her.
My “boys” are 24 and 27 years old now. When they were young soda was a special treat when we had pizza (with a side salad), also a special treat. If we did eat at a fast food restaurant they ordered milk and substitute for fries if available. They claimed they were the only kids who did not get fruit roll ups, gummy worms in their lunches instead getting fruit or bananas with funny faces drawn on them which probably got thrown out but I thought was funny. Fast forward – they now thank me – they have no appetite for crappy food. They cook and eat simply, vegetables, meat & whole grains. One son has a salad every day for lunch and the other, most every day with dinner. Good eating takes restraint. You have to plan and make good choices every day.
I know we have to start with the school lunch programs and demand better for our kids. Go Jamie Oliver!
I am a community educator, working in queens NY, with the Nutrition and Health program for Cornell university cooperative extension ” and is shocking what the kids think is healthy food, and how many girls don’t care about the class that I do in the school just because their skinny, I love this article because, I can’t printing and show them that is not just my word but a doctor, and the doctor Mark Haynes. I have a parent, that was very skinny she told me that she eats right, control portion size for her and her family and follow the pyramid recommendation, by the next workshop she told me that the doctor told her that she has a really high cholesterol. She was the perfect example of is not just about calories or portion but what you eat, so the following week a took all the parents to the supermarket and I asked her to show me some of the food that she usually buy… All high in fat and a lot high fructose corn syrup, I am happy to say that after that day 8 families are really making better choices when comes to choose healthy food for their family.
Thanks for this it will help to keep on doing my job, education for parents, kid and also senior citizen
Mark… When my children were tiny my friend and farmer Robin VanEn (who incidentilly started the CSA movement here in the US) gave me the book, Sugar Blues. At the time I thought the book and Robin’s no-sugar approach were radical. But just her exposure changed the way I fed my kids.
When I served them juice I diluted it with water 3 to 1. Her consciousness woke me up to refined flour and I began to check labels on bread to see that the first ingredient was a whole grain. She helped me start a garden when I didn’t know what kale was.
That was 20 years ago. When they were young my children complained about not having sodas or sugary foods in the house. And I worried that they might rebel when they were older, but they’re grown now and it’s all balanced out. They spent a few years eating the junk that other teens consumed, but have come back to whole foods.
Theses days my son calls me from his apartment to ask about how to cook brown rice or which veggies to add first when doing a stir-fry. And all three of them know to cut out sugars and refined foods when they’re not feeling well. When they were young these pseudo-foods were only consumed when they were eating out or at friends’ houses. They loved the treat, but were satisfied at home to have fruit sugars or the occasional honey-sweetened cookie.
Making a change HAS TO BEGIN EARLY, because as you’ve said, sugar is an addictive substance. I think good parenting is about setting an example…. in health as well as behavior.
Don’t need more regulation and government control. Just educate people and let them really know what they are eating. If you don’t eat the stuff out there, they won’t make it. Education and people can change this…NOT government controlling everything we put in our mouths. If you eliminate all the bad stuff then you have forced your life on someone else. That other person may know that just a small amount of that ‘bad stuff’ won’t hurt them but you have taken that choice away from them. People have to be responsible for themselves. You can’t tell me that people don’t know that if they live on soda and sugar that they are going to be in trouble. But if I want an occasional soda I don’t want it outlawed so that I can’t have it. The commercial on TV that shows an overweight mom driving in a car with her overweight son and saying that she had no idea he was overweight….ya right. Where has she been?
Right on, Candy. Taxes and nanny state do NOT work. Freedom of choice and personal responsibility are essential. Education is the key. Was just at a Weston Price meeting and people are waking up! Dr. Hyman’s info is vital and I agree with it – except his stand on soy – but I do not agree with regulations and a nanny state!
Personal responsibility is not enough when the food industry is sneaking poisons into our foods. Regulations helped people stop smoking, and it can help fight obesity, as well. http://www.motherjones.com/tom-philpott/2012/05/bpa-fat-obese-badge-cans
My twin girls are 18 now but they remember when they were kids for snacks, i used to give them sliced up raw veggies. And I never ever fed my kids hot dogs. I’m not a saint, we did once in awhile eat at wendy’s. And for a few years, they did get into some junky food. My daughter was diagnosed with Asbergers syndrome when she was 8, and was on every medication under the sun. It wasnt until she was 14 and radically changed her diet and stopped taking the medication that we noticed a radical change in her. Not only did she lose a ton of weight (weight gain which was caused by medication) her symptoms were just remarkably “under control”. I noticed at that time a direct relation between her mood/behaviors and the quality of food that she was putting into her body. I know this article is about kids and diabetes, but the importance of good nutrition for children goes way beyond just one group. The difference for my daughter between junk food and healthy eating was absolutely life changing. `We always were healthy eaters but it took us years to figure this out, years that were spent with my daughter on all kinds of medications that were completely useless. In all those years, not one doctor ever said to us, “why dont you look at your diet and how it could be improved?”. They just wrote prescriptions for all kinds of medications. Its a sad situation. My daughter who has asbergers is now a full vegan and headed off to college in september. I am proud that she is a vegan, I know i helped her get to where she is at! There is an old saying I remember from when i was a child…”you are what you eat”…..that is literally so true!
We have a three year old who is already addicted to sugar even though we would be considered healthy eaters. It happens fast with a treat here and there. I take full responsibility and have made the following changes. Consistent mealtimes with two snacks, no high fat/sugar snacks in the house, vegs and whole fruit treats. This is difficult as I tend to crave that stuff too. Making changes that hopefully will lead to more changes.
And taxing soda….no….why should I pay more to have an occasional soda because someone else can’t stop themselves. Personal responsibility. Where has it gone?
It does seem unfair to pay a tax on things that other people abuse and cause health problems for themselves. However, if it is truly unhealthy, you won’t miss it. Also, think of the unintentional tax that those who can “afford” it are paying – the cost of health care insurance and health care itself. Who do you think is pushing up the cost of health care and the insurance to provide it by their poor eating habits and careless lifestyle? That’s what’s unfair.
Candy [ironic name], we tax cigarettes and alcohol and other ‘sinful’ things. Why not soda?? Sure, have one if you want, along with your cocktail and cigarette, but pay the tax to support the consequent medical bills.
Then lets put some more tax on sugar, bread, rice, potatoes, and anything else that someone somewhere decides is not healthy for you. And, when you pay for your own health care that makes you responsible for your health. I don’t want to tell you what you can eat but if you do stupid things, then you take care of the end result. It all gets back to education. If you know if it bad for you and it will cost YOU in the end for all the care that you need, you just might thing twice before smoking those couple packs of cigarettes a day. But as long as you think it won’t hurt you and someone else will pick up the tab for your care, you will continue to smoke ‘em.
I have one of each. I don’t eat beef, lamb or pork so my kids grew up only eating fish, chicken and the occasional turkey. That was until I married my second husband. He was a junk food addict. Only wanted to eat out, all of the time. I finally put my foot down and said no, I am going to cook for my kids! I had to wean them off of their Taco Hell habit after he moved out. I threw out all of the junk food in the house, including the white sugar! Before I married him I ate organically, cooked everything naturally and ate mostly raw foods. I baked my own bread as well. He just made it impossible for me to do that.
My kids are now 31 and 25. I say I have one of each as one is a total vegetarian (my daughter) and my son eats a lot of junk because his gf and the three kids eat it as well. They don’t have a lot of money so junky food goes farther. My son does most of the cooking and he does make a decent meal- one protein, veggies and a starch. He cooks more rice for starch then other things but they eat some tater-tots etc. My grandson has issues with his immune system so I have pleaded for my son to feed him more organic food and more raw food. He is only two so I worry about him. Instead of making her own baby food and breastfeeding him she nursed him for two months then stopped and bought him baby food in jars. But my son read labels and stuck to the better ones. I contribute as much organic produce as I can.
Her other two are thin and healthy. One can only do so much. I model as best I can. I eat organically myself and eat very little chicken anymore as well as fish. I would love to wean myself off of all meat but it’s hard. When my kids were in school they made their own lunches as well but also had school lunches at times. Since I was there a lot when they were in school I watched what they ate then.
There is a big push to lose ALL vending machines at schools these days. The two at our school were replaced by two Aquafina machines- no more soda or candy machines at all. I was really pleased to see that.
Jamie Oliver is doing a great job as is Michelle Obama. I just hope that they can keep up the battle. If we ban together and bring down companies like Monsanto we can do a HECK of a lot more to make our kids world- and our own- a LOT healthier!!
GO ORGANIC AND BAN MONSANTO!!
I agree with Candy.
NO nanny state EVER!!!!
The stress of a government pushing you around is worse that a bad diet. Just educate people, and let them live their lives as they see fit.
Candy,
your comments show as much ignorance as the woman who doesn’t know her kid is obese. You don’t know that government is already subsidizing toxic foodstuff to the tune of billions of “your” dollars? You don’t know that by not regulating the industries that profit from diabesity, the taxpayer is encouraging the corporations to make more of “what the people want” and to make more profits out of the spread of illness in so many children 33%!!!!!!! You dont know that farmers who are trying to produce healthy real food are going broke all over the place?! You don’t know that no-body is talking about banning soda (except you) or are you just being disingenuous? And you honestly care whether your occasional can of soda costs 20 cents more or less? When food costs a quarter of what it cost 60 years ago, but isnt nutritious anymore. Personal responsibility applies to everything. I wonder about the people who read an article about a catastrophic health and economic problem facing the whole country, written by a doctor who is on the cutting edge of public health education and nutrition… and she writes about the cost of an occasional soda. Please show some restraint!
Dr. Hyman,
In part, I agree with many of your assertions and have taught that for the twenty five years I taught nutrition. However I disagree with your assertions re exercise. Both nutrition and exercise should be in the maxim “Lets move and lets eat real food.” As a rule of thumb for adults, it costs about 100 kcal. to move a mile whether running or walking so that it would require 35 miles to exercise off 3500 kcal. per pound of fat. However, at the same time, one is becoming more aerobically fit as can be measured by using the tables of Lusk: fat is being used as a fuel more of the time in both exercise activities and non exercise movements. Additionally, nutrients, hormones and growth factors (including the ones you mentioned in your book) are stimulating synthesis of tissue throughout the body, importantly, including the brain so that one has the potential of getting smarter. the Naperville, IL experience as described by John Ratey in his book “Smart” gives a lay level explanation.So its both the exercise and nutrition that need to change. As an individual, I can change both of these, Its harder to change our cultural attributes as revealed in our businesses, advertising, nutritional assumptions, exercise willingness, etc.
The reason that soda, sugar, and certain foods need to be regulated is because food producers and marketers are targeting our children who do not know better. For example…Vitamin Water. Sounds like a great healthy choice for kids and they are even sold in vending machine in schools. There is a lot of sugar in vitamin water and did you see the paltry amounts of vitamins in it. People think this is a healthy drink so they drink this instead of sodas and its just as bad.
Food companies also sell food to schools for lunches and a processed breaded chicken patty, deep fried in who knows what synthetic oil, on the cheapest white bun, french fries fried in the same oil, a scoop of corn, and freezer burnt mixed vegetables microwaved in plastic BPA leaking dishes, and chocolate milk is not a good meal. My pediatrician’s daughter goes to public school and the school forces his daughter to purchase milk every day for lunch. Even though she packs her own lunch and brings her own water to drink. She purchases the milk and throws it in the garbage on the way back to her seat. They say she won’t get enough calcium if she doesn’t drink milk. But there is more calcium in the sardines she eats and it’s even more bioavailable calcium than in the milk. Yet it is the USDA trying to support dairy farmers that’s the real reason for purchasing milk.
There are all kinds of candy and soda dispensers throughout schools. I don’t care how much you preach to your kids. When a group of other kids all go down to the vending machine to buy skittles and a soda, your kid will too. “It’s not like we’re doing drugs Mom”, your kids will tell you. But it’s just as bad, just as addicting, just as easy to succumb to peer pressure.
Such eye opening information. I always thought since I maintain a healthy weight that I was “safe.” Thanks for educating me on the truth. This article really inspires me to continue implementing not only positive changes for myself but my children as well. I’ve completely stopped by junk food which has been quite refreshing and my family didn’t complain as much as I thought they would. Thanks!!
One of the problems is that the general public still believes the “powers that be” will protect us when that is just not the case. Money talks. One person, one family, one community can not do this alone. It’s a national collective ethos – the “not my problem” individualism epidemic that sees the world with blinders on and also fails to think ahead – to see that what we do everyday impacts us for a very long time.
Soda is highly addictive as is sugar. One doesn’t necessarily notice this until they commit to eliminating it entirely from the diet. Humans think they are stronger then the addicition but it messes with your biology without you knowing it. You’re not the same person when you’re addicted to something – anything. Those who protest the loudest may be the ones who have to investigate this within themselves a little more. That being said, this article is about children. When they don’t know how to read – we teach them. Don’t know how to swim? We teach them, right?! What child wouldn’t prefer a Coke over a glass of water – unless they know all that the Coke is doing to their insides – their capacity to be a healthy, active, inquisitive child is being stripped away by the garbage that’s being pushed down their gullett. And it is being “pushed” for sure. We don’t want to create a world of orthorexics but rather a world of critical consumers who stand up for their health. Adults have to set that example first.
The word “praxis” comes to mind. My interpretation is putting a theory or knowledge you have obtained into practice. I’m using this term from Paulo Friere who wrote “We know ourselves to be determined but not destined.” I come from a poor family and yet we still managed to comsume pop tarts, sugar laden cereal, hubba bubba bubblegum and coolaid everyday from the early 70s to late 80s. I was also a very sick child – not overwieght but chronically ill with depression and various infections requiring numeous antibiotics as well as surgery. In 2006 when I was officially diagnosed with depression and bipolar disorder I thought (and was told) that that was my “destiny.” After all, it runs in the family. Knowing myself to be “determined” however helped me discover that I had been set up from day one (my mom fed my twin brother and I milk with Caro syrup – as per doctor’s orders) to crave sweets and carbs and garbage. It’s very much a systemic issue. In 2009, I ventured into my own “private praxis” looking at the foods and daily habits that contributed to my poor health. I could not get support from the mdeical community or my husband (ex). Then Dr. Hyman shared UltraMind with the world and I felt like I could make real changes and not worry so much how it inconvenienced those around me. Changing habits should not be viewed as a burden but rather as a liberatory, life-altering celebration. Sure, when I’m standing in line at our grocery store and I’m assualted by the scent of freshly baked bread while staring in the face of a nice cold Coke – I begin to crave it and sometimes get mad that I can’t have it. But then I look at my cart – and see the fresh vegetables, nuts, coconut milks and herbs and I see possibilities beyond the 5 minutes of bliss that would occur while downing a loaf of bread and bottle of soda.
We’re killing ourselves and our kids. During my third year as a teacher I had 2 students, brothers, who’d both bring 2-liter bottles of orange soda with a packet of ramen noodles for lunch – every day. Their mom worked at walmart and could get this generic soda for 50 cents and the noodles for 7 cents. She chose orange soda because “it had a picture of an orange on it” and “that’s the only thing her boys would drink that had fruit in it.” She was a very loving mother but just didn’t know better. The entire family of 6 was obese but I know in my heart that is money was scarce and that she just didn’t make the connection to the “orange” soda and noodles and the weight and truancy problems. She wasn’t feeding them cake, after all. It’s easy to judge but you don’t know what you don’t know! Borke my heart every day. Knowledge is only power if you do something with it so…it’s time we do something about it.
We need to organize and fight the Food Industry! The chemiclas, dyes, crappy oils, fake food, ect. that is allowed in our food is a travesty! It makes no sense, with the health crisis we have in this county, to allow these poisons, we will never be healthy. We need to start a movement, a giant, huge movement! And it needs to start with people in the know. People like Dr. Mark Hyman, Suzanne Somers, Dr. Dean Ornish, Dr. Brantley, Kathy Freston, Kris Carr, people who understand health and are passionate about it. Organize through social media so people like me can join in and together we can bring down the Food Lobbist destroying our health.
Dr. Hyman, have you considered the role of epigenetics in childhood “diabesity”? Could it be that the lifestyle or diet of the parent or grandparent is causing these findings that even skinny kids are diabetic or prediabetic? Changing what we eat and increasing the understanding of what sugar does to us would still be of utmost importance, but also understanding the effects that parents and even grandparents are having on their children would be particularly enlightening.
Wow! Great article. I teach in an elementary school in Indiana, the state with many sedentary cities as titled by several studies. As a physcial education instructor I see that most of my kids are heading the way of chronic diabesity. I am saddened by kindergarten students who cannot climb onto a vertical pole and hold their own weight off the ground for even five seconds. Many children return to their spots in the gym crying from shame. The proportion of lean to fat body tissue is dangerously leaning to the fat side. One set of parents threatened to sue my school system because I had taken height and weight measurements and based the grades partly on them. Why is America shooting itself in the foot with its lackadaisacal approach. Indiana does not require height and weight measurements in its schools. Hardly any students can hold themselves in an arm hang, let alone do a pull up. Some fifth-graders fail to achieve five correct push ups, sit ups or squat thrusts. In America, sugar and carbs make the world go round.
I am curious what percentage of fat kids have one or more cardiovascular risk in comparison to the 37% of normal weight kids?
I know I am unusual in my feelings about food, but we need to tell ourselves and teach our children that we eat to live not live to eat. We need to stop putting so much focus on having food at every event and activity. Growing up, I went to lots of activities at school, church, Girl Scouts etc. and we rarely had food or snacks. Now it seems they have to have some sort of food at every activity. You can’t have a church meeting for an hour without coffee/tea and cookies or cake. As a child, we were never given snacks at school. When we had company at our home we didn’t buy or fix food for our guests. They ate before coming over and we might have something to drink while playing cards. It seems now you have to offer your guests a table full of food. What about getting together to enjoy each other’s company. Unfortunately we live lives of rushing from one activity to another and are rarely home to fix nutritious meals. Hence eating out at all the fast food places. But even if we do eat at home, we need to realize that we just don’t need large quantities of food. We can survive on way less. My grown children toured Europe over the holidays last year and the one thing they pointed out was just how small the portions were that they give you in restaurants. I guess I think more than anything, we need to change our thinking about food. And education about nutrition would be a good thing to incorporate into our health classes But we can’t start dictating what parents serve their children at home. Personal choice needs to be maintained with unfortunately letting them suffer the natural consequences of their actions and choices. I happen to like a McDonald’s coke and a Reeces Cup every now and then. I don’t want anyone telling me that I can’t have that.
I have said for years that we should have heavy taxes on the “foods” that are killing us: soda, snack food, candies– and let’s include alcohol, too. Let’s face it: as taxpayers, we are left with the financial burden of paying for the ills of the obese society through lack of ability to work, Medicaid and Medicare programs etc. If you want a soda, fine, but pay the TRUE cost of the soda. And bank that tax money to pay the health insurance bills.
We do need people like Dr. Hyman to help change the tide of un-health in our society. I agree, it is a social disease and one that is fostered my large food manufacturers and advertising. We must advocate for change on many levels: removing venfing machines from schools, insisting on healthy lunches in the cafeterias and rethinking bagged lunches. We need to encourage families to grow some of their own foods such as greens and herbs and tomatoes: a very simple idea and money-saving and health-promoting. We also need to get away from the computer and iphones and get out and move. We need a nation of kids that play outside, ride bicycles, rollerskate and play kickball. Kids should climb trees!
We are responsible as adults and parents to set the bar high for our children. It is no better incentive for us to become health-conscious than to set an aexample for our children. I encourage my clients and patients to get out and walk and play with their kids. I teach them how to prepare healthful meals. I move them away from packaged foods in favor of simple, easy to prepare snacks and dishes. It’s not hard, but it takes commitment and desire. Like Dr. Mark says, it is a form of social change that has to begin with and through us. Let’s do it!
Diane
I am disgusted that schools are allowed to serve such horrid foods – and that they are full of junk foods and beverages!
Face it, nearly every child eats school food and there is no excuse for schools serving unhealthy junk to kids. It’s like child abuse!
Start there and start NOW.
The problem with parents and home are many-faceted. Even when parents know what to do, they often opt for fast food due to lack of time, and cheap food due to lack of money. Oprah said a few years ago, when the economy was much better, that more than half of American families were relying on food banks to make it through the month. These are people who buy fast food on the way home from minimum wage jobs because they’re tired and they can not afford healthy foods. Help them.
Let’s have our government subsidize apples and celery, not corn and tobacco.
Let’s make food stamps easier to get.
Let’s provide after-school activities (physical) and recreation for all of our children, from the inner city kids to the suburban latch-key kids so they can get active instead of sit in front the electrical devices watching commercials for soda and fast food! Hello! There used to be little parks all over the place where kids could go shoot hoops or roller skate or jump around – safely – inexpensively – and not be stuck indoors all the time.
We actually have a huge lifestyle problem in this country – and it’s showing up in the poor health of all, especially kids.
Too many have to work long hours for cheap pay, sit in stressful rush hour traffic to get to those jobs, and have little support from society, or, heaven forbid, their employers. Low wages. No healthcare. Few benefits.
And then corporations are allowed to sell us GMO foods and things like “pink slime” without our knowledge!
Some people say sue McDonalds?! No. change some laws. Change some advertising. Protect kids from predatory sugar pushers the way we try to protect them from predatory sex perverts or drug dealers. We need Congress to help!
Dr Hyman, what are your thoughts on autoimmune diabetes in adults (e.g., LADA or type 1.5)? Research seems to be showing an increase in autoimmune factors across the diabetes spectrum, both for thin and for overweight people.
Dr. Hyman completely supports this research Carl and has created the Blood Sugar Solution to help dampen the triggers and response from inflammatory disturbances in imbalanced blood sugars and insulin resistance. Check out this site for more information: http://www.bloodsugarsolution.com
we need to make healthy food more accessible, to eat healthy can be very expensive, you are responsible for your food choices, but what can a family on a low income budget do, when they go food shopping, and they find 5 loads of bread for $5, and find a multi-grain load for $5.99, and 3 liter bottle of soda for a $1. We must push for lower healthy food prices so that it’s accessible to everyone. In the long run you’ll see a more healthy population, and millions, if not trillions of $$$$$$$$ will be saved
In British Columbia we are making some good moves to have only healthy food in our schools. If there are vending machines most schools have changed to have only healthy food and drink. Even for class parties we have changed from having the junk food to healthy snacks. Some schools throughout the province have a fruit and vegetable program…once every two weeks a fruit or vegetable is served to all children. Many children have not tasted mini cucumbers, mini peppers or star fruit. They love it! The school I work at just put in a big vegetable garden and all classes have a small plot. We still have a long way to go….like making personal fitness the number one objective in physical education classes instead of sports. (sports are important, too, but not all students play on school teams, but all should be striving for personal fitness.
Change is difficult. Habits are hard to break. Good habits are just as hard to break.
O.K. The philosophical/logical construct gauntlet has been thrown down.
To change an orbit or trajectory often a jolt of some sort is needed. Dr. Angelo Volandes, faculty at Harvard Medical
School, has been making videos to give patients the simultaneous visual/auditory experience which provides a more
acute learning experience than a ‘talk’ by their doctor. Hurrah for the youngsters who are, thank you Alice Waters and Michelle Obama, growing healthy edibles and eating what they have nurtured. Kudos to parents who provide exemplary
diets for their families. For everyone else? A multi-pronged approach.
Some of us can initiate or sign petitions to producers of unhealthy products – and then Walk Our Talk. (Confession:
I am the one crying “Poison” in that crowded supermarket…..perhaps you have heard…….). Let’s set new parameters
for political campaigns and Make Food Corruption a huge issue. Billboards. Artists and celebrities would love to
‘do their thing’ – perhaps our own celeb, Doc Hyman, can gently persuade…..a George Clooney, for example…….. a fine choice and one who just might sign on. Writers for popular shows, kids/tween/ young adult faves, weary of
the bleak politics out there would be inspired to, if not save the planet, per se, save the planet’s peoples. Head to
your school board meetings, march up to customer service counters at groceries with vile products (anything with trans-fat, for example qualifies) and announce loudly that the product is poison (I have done that) – grab all of your friends and stage a ‘poison-in’, notify the press, and get some attention. DEMAND curriculum changes in schools. Kids need to learn
more about their biology, their health and what it means for all of the activities they do or want to do.
Brainstorm – all of the above is nothing…….YOU…US….WE can effect change.
I’m happy to say that my kids, 26 and 20, know what real food is. They may go overboard once in a while now they don’t live here anymore, but 90% of the time the eat fruit, veggies, legumes, nuts, seeds, etc. Soda maybe a glas a week, no gluten, no diary. also, they exercise almost daily. Our eldest son was getting out of this way when he had a girlfriend who was used to eat less healthy and they were sick all the time. So he went back to the food he was healthy on. Problem solved.
.
At the sportclub I always take “easy” fruit like grapes, small cucumbers, small tomatoes and bananas when there are matches and offer that to the kids. Fast food. Nothing faster than peeling a banana.
When there are special occasions I bring a huge bowl of fruitsalad + refills for all the kids and they love it. When they become champion my treat is to make smoothies for everbody. It would be a good thing if they associate having a great time with fruit and veggies. I tried to get smoothies on the menu, but the parents who take care of the canteen find it too much work
Also, my kids are a good example. They are the best players in the club and in the top 20 of the country and they always have grapes, bananas, dates and water when they play matches. Winning from the players with “sportdrinks” and donuts.
I’m happy to say that my kids, 26 and 20, know what real food is. They may go overboard once in a while now they don’t live here anymore, but 90% of the time the eat fruit, veggies, legumes, nuts, seeds, etc. Soda maybe a glass a week, no gluten, no diary. Also, they exercise almost daily. Our eldest son was getting out of this way when he had a girlfriend who was used to eat less healthy. They were sick all the time. So he went back to the food he was healthy on and tried to get her to do the same. Problem solved.
At the sportclub I always take “easy” fruit like grapes, small cucumbers, small tomatoes and bananas when there are matches and offer that to the kids. Fast food. Nothing faster than peeling a banana.
.
When there are special occasions I bring a huge bowl of fruitsalad + refills for all the kids and they love it. When they become champion my treat is to make smoothies for everbody. I want them to associate having a great time with fruit and veggies for the rest of their life. I tried to get smoothies on the menu, but the parents who take care of the canteen find it too much work
Also, my kids are a good example. They are the best players in the club and in the top 20 of the country and they always have grapes, bananas, dates and water when they play matches. Winning from the players with “sportdrinks” and donuts.
Gov’t regulation/taxation/nanny state is NOT, NOT, NOT the answer, EVER! It is ALWAYS expensive, inefficient, ineffective and corrupt. The one thing it IS effective in doing is creating more gov’t which is, in itself, addicted to spending and excess (to the extreme) thereby making it the Least Qualified entity to control and regulate things at the personal level of American citizens. Cases in point : poverty (same level as 40 years ago, after spending $15 Trillion); Drugs; Alcohol; Tobacco (if it is in fact as lethal as claimed, then why hasn’t it been outlawed? Simple – because now the gov’t. profits from the sin taxes it has levied). A nanny state doesn’t solve problems, it enables people to continue in them and even exacerbates them, by paying for the consequences in people’s lives, not by eliminating the source of the problem. (i.e. poverty programs give people money, they don’t teach people how to make a living. Health care/health insurance programs – i.e. Obamacare – pays for the consequences of people’s poor choices, it doesn’t teach them how to live healthy – and never will, because if the program is successful then it will no longer be needed, thus drying up the politicians regulatory slush funds, and defeating their purpose, which is to generate income to themselves and to buy votes to keep them in office.
The solution: get gov’t the h*ll out of “caring” for and controlling we the people, and back to protecting us (from crime, invasions, fraud, etc.) which is it’s proper role, and let us learn from our mistakes, and from our successes. Have you noticed how quickly (most) of us began to learn and exercise control over our own lives when we have to pay for the consequences of our own choices? And yes, we will have to help each other and lean on each other when we make mistakes and poor choices, but mistakes and failures usually have a powerful impact on how we learn to think and live so that we do not repeat them. Sorry, but gov’t doesn’t do this. We are even now paying for the welfare of our gov’t. which has spent itself uncontrollably into financial oblivion, and continues to spend, and their ” solution” is to raise our taxes to get more money to spend and to pay interest on the debt (not even to eliminate the debt), and not to change their spending habits. WAKE UP, PEOPLE! You want to depend on one addict (gov’t) to provide the cure for another addict, when to gov’t doesn’t even recognize, acknowledge or address its own addiction???
I don’t know what I’m doing wrong but I can’t seem to get a comment posted. I wrote a lot while ago but now I will just say… That I hope and pray that I will be able to learn enough from the BSS program so that I will be able to help others in my community.
I have a blog of my process with menus with easy printing.
Visit my blog about diabesity:
http://www.goodfoodbuzz.com
I like Dr. Hyman’s philosophy and what he advocates is fully supported by legitimate scientific research, however, the last thing we need is an increased nanny state and more taxes. Remember letting the camel get it’s nose in the tent……………….and no tax dollars are ever spent for the indicated purpose. Generally just another level of public purse employees are created to oversee whatever is being taxed so that eventually perhaps one cent out of each tax dollar received is used for the public good. Education is the answer and it starts and builds slowly. Buy Dr. Hyman’s book as a gift for family and friends. A big Oak tree starts from a small acorn. A number of people have taken note of my going from 203.5 to 178 pounds, and still going down, and asked the “secret.” Several on my recommendation have bought the book, The Blood Sugar Solution, and are following the regimen.
Perhaps we need to get some of the actors and athletes and musicians talking about this. Children leave their homes and become young adults making their own decisions…but where to find the inspiration?
I’ve heard that for many meditators, it takes falling in love with a teacher for them to really get into the practice.
My husband surprised me with a copy of the Blood Sugar Solution and I am all geared up to read..ready.set..go!!
This is a very good essay, Dr. Hyman.
I agree with Candy that people need to take personal responsibility and that part of the issue is education. What she is missing, but Dr. Hyman promotes is ACCESS. It is obvious that one cannot make good choices if one does not have access to healthful food. For example, some years ago I went to many stores in a poor part of Baltimore looking for bananas or any other fresh fruit and could not find any. No fruit, no bananas? Holy cow! What do these people eat? Well, there were lots of snacks with trans fat and many chemicals. It was extremely depressing. How can we help?
Community:
1) Promote Farmer’s Markets in all neighborhoods, especially in poorer ones.
2) Support efforts such as MOM’s (My Organic Market) in the Washington DC metro area: the owner opens stores specifically in needy neighborhoods to give ACCESS to healthful foods to all. They have the best variety and most excellent organic produce at prices lower than Whole Foods so rich folks shop there, too.
3) Work with the PTA to demand healthier foods in schools. My kids never eat school provided food because they think it smells bad.
4) Interverne with the departments of education to demand that PE is not removed from school curricula.
At Home:
We cook every day except for Friday night, when we go out. We cook fresh vegetables every day, and meat no more than twice a week, if at all. The children are part of the action in the kitchen. Everyone has a responsibility. We grow our own herbs in pots (sadly, we don’t have land for growing veggies but we try to plant peppers and tomatoes in pots- hope springs eternal). We plan the weekly menu on Sunday and go grocery shopping together. In other words: food preparation became the family hobby.
I work full time outside the home (40 minute commute each way in stressful DC traffic). I am a tired mama. But, so what? Cooking at home does not take crazy amounts of time, especially with a mostly veggie diet. Veggies are cooked in a flash. Rice takes 15 minutes. Noodles take about the same or less. Meat takes longer to cook, so we eat it only when we don’t have other after school activities.
Education and ACCESS are the keys to a more healthy community.
and… YES, soda SHOULD BE TAXED. Like cigarettes, it has no redeeming value. It is pure toxic junk.
Great comments! There is definetely a problem with our system. Even if you try your best at home, you can’t control what the kids share with each other in school. My 3 kids were raised vegetarian (almost vegan and gluten free). We do eat some organic eggs, but other then that it’s whole grains, yams, beans, nuts and loads of fresh fruits and vegetables. Our treats are usually fresh and dried fruits and some natural desserts sweetened with a little bit of raw agave nectar or honey. An occassional piece of dark chocolate (>70% cocoa) is a special treat.
Everything was fine until they went to school. Even though I always packed their lunches, they started sharing things with their friends (my daughter probably exchanged her oranges for candy). We homeshooled for the first few years so she started school in 3rd grade. Within 2 weeks of school starting she got sick to her stomach and had to stay home for 2 days. I tried to have a talk with her and explain that her body is not used to junk food and that she will always get sick from it. She understood and promissed to stay away, but the addiction was stronger. I kept finding candy wrappers in her school bag and then, after spending her own money in the cafeteria, she started stealing money from her older brother. That’s when I decided to put a stop to it and met with the teacher. I wrote a letter to the cafeteria staff (as suggested by her teacher) saying that they were not allowed to sell her anything (pretty drastic, but it worked).
We had many more talks and with tears in her eyes she said that she wanted to stop eating junk food (especially sugar), but sometimes just couldn’t. It breaks my heart to see her struggle and it makes me mad when I have to deal with it when she gets sick.
She’s finishing forth grade now and things are a little better, but I had to send some alternative snacks to her teacher to keep for special occassions. I also sent some pencils and small toys to be given out as prizes for good behaviour (why do teachers think that candy is the best reward?). In my meeting with her teachers I informed them that she had gluten sensitivity and that helped keep them from giving her cupcakes and cookies on birthdays.
My older son did better in the begining, but sugar addiction is the worst and no amount of explaining and teaching will help. He loves dates and can eat 10-15 for his afteschool snack. It’s still sugar, but he thinks it’s OK since it’s natural and comes from a whole fruit. He also got hooked on chocolate, but at least he doesn’t like milk chocolate and only eats dark chocolate occassionally.
When he first started school in 4th grade, he was teased by other kids for eating fruits for lunch and I had to discuss with his teacher too. He made no friends because of that, in spite of being a very friendly and social kid. What is wrong with this society??? How are some kids being raised?
My youngest daughter started her addiction in Kindergarten. She told her teacher that she didn’t have anything for her snack so the teacher gave her cookies (unbelievable!) for 2 days before writting me a note saying the I’ve been forgetting about my daughter’s snacks. I responded saying that she has brought her snacks (fruits and nuts) home for the last 2 days saying that she didn’t have the time to eat it in school.
We nipped it in the bud and the gluten sensitivity helped also
. My daughter was really ashamed for lying to her teacher and never did again.
Nothing will change in our society until the parents take responsibility for their own health and set examples for their kids. Unfortunately, it’s the parents fault who start their kids on cookies, soda and juices when they are young and then complain that their kids don’t want to eat fruits and vegetables. We need to start the kids on fruits instead of cereal and crackers and then they won’t have any problems. But we need to set the good examples for the kids to follow. They learn by imitating adults.
Spending time outside and playing with the kids will keep them active and away from the TV and computer games. But that means that the parents need to become more active and again set the example.
It’s very frustrating trying to do things right nowdays!!! This country is all about making money and the big businesses or the government, don’t care about people and our health. If Mrs. Obama would like to make any changes, she should try to get the government to subsidize organic fruits and vegetables so everybody can afford them (and have no excuses) instead of subsidizing sugar, wheat, corn, soy and conventional farming (meat, eggs, dairy). Why are we making those items cheaper that make us sick and fat and then complain about the cost of healthcare???
Keep up the good work Dr. Hyman! Together, maybe we can get through to some parents and help this society.
A new sad update…. I just found out our school system has implemented a new policy that says we can’t have baked goods from home in school now. It is fine to have the packaged food with fake ingredients, but just too DANGEROUS to have someone’s mom or dad make something REAL from home. Ugh. The rule stems from trying to control allergies I guess, but it is just another short-sighted stab at the problem and has bad consequences. I could have made a muffin with coconut oil and sprouted flour and farm eggs that while not ideal, could have been REAL food. But now the packaged goods are surely full of chemicals and everyone thinks that is ok. We have so much work to do to get to real food for people.
I really appreciate your well written and informative article. I completely agree that what you eat is paramount as opposed to he quantity of calories. The statistics for kids are alarming!As a Health Coach I try to create awareness in schools by presenting Smart Shopping & Eating Programs. I am the Health & Wellness Representative for my Middle & High School so I interact with the PTA & administrators to improve the food that is served at school. I also give Diabetes Lifestyle Classes at a Wellness Center. It is slow going with the schools. For instance it took all year to have sugary cereal removed from the breakfast & lunch choices. The Health & Wellness Fair got postponed this year and I offered many alternatives-but nothing has come to fruition. Still trying to serve smoothies to raise money at the HS as an alternative to soda. It took years to remove soda from the machines in our district but now PTA Moms sell soda each Thursday to raise money for the Post Prom Party. Baby Steps & Patience are key.
and then there r people like me…..5 /10 pounds over weight..eat VERY healthy..all organic mostly veggies…small amount of fruit and meat..no sugar no dairy no grains…lots and lots of exercice and pre diabetic
My insulin is on the low side….not sure what else to do 
Hi Jennifer,
We greatly sympathize with your blood sugar status and confusion. Have you seen Dr. Hyman’s Blood Sugar Solution? Check it out- it sounds like the perfect fit for your needs: http://www.bloodsugarsolution.com
As you usual, Dr. Hyman, you are nothing short of inspiring! I could not agree more with your push for national change, but I do think that the way to getting there is by implementing diet/nutritional shifts on a micro level. As a raw foodist myself, I take diet and nutrition to heart and use my career as a holistic anxiety coach/motivational speaker/author to inspire my generation as well as younger generations to “feed their minds” so to speak. When you are giving your mind (this in large part refers to your large intestine) the best possible food, everything else including weight and physical health falls into balance. I am living proof of this myself, and I know with an optimized diet, people can achieve the greatest health of their lives.
If you think regulation is not necessary, you do not understand what the food industry is up to. They deliberately poison our food. They deliberately add addictive ingredients. They WANT us to be fat and sick. Here’s an article from Mother Jones talking about how BPA can contribute to obesity. Wouldn’t you prefer that the government put an end to this?
http://www.motherjones.com/tom-philpott/2012/05/bpa-fat-obese-badge-cans
Teenage social gatherings are hard….they just want to order pizza. How can we make it uncool for teens to want junkfood? to sleep late? to be lazy? We’ve accepted this as the norm for teens when in reality this is a critical time in their lives and it should not be lost in this way. My daughters and her friends have Iron Chef contests. Instead of eating junk, they challenge each other to cook a dish for dinner when they get together for sleep overs. They time it! They see who can make the best dish with a main ingredient. The other day it was coconut milk. They made a great dinner of sauteed veggies, and even homemade chai tea. I try to educate my kids about their bodies and how their bodies work. Which means I need to understand my own body. We talk about what creates health inside a body and what creates disease, then plan what we’ll buy from the grocery store or farmers market when we go. I feel so strongly about this, there is a definite urgency to this matter.
I would like to refer Candy, Phil and other Tea Partiers to the post by Penelope above. If you don’t like the government in your lives please stop using the interstate highway system, one of the biggest government funded projects in the history of the country initiated by a Republican president (Eisenhower) whan the marginal tax rate was over 70%. Our tax money is currently subsidizing the corn industry, not small farmers, but ADM, Cargill and other multinationals. Please watch King Corn to see how all of us are paying for the obesity epidemic.
So let’s all take more “personal responsibility” by contacting our elected representatives and ask tham to repeal the outdated farm subsidies for corn, beef and dairy and give those subsidies to small non-corporate farmers commited to sustainable organic farming methods and make healthy food more affordable for even the poorest Americans.
Finally, the article that addresses my problem. You’ve said much about overweight but not so much about the normal or underweight person. Eating healthily is necessary for everyone regardless of body shape.
My wife and I both conquered diabetes by eliminating wheat and other grains from our diets.
I just celebrated my 78th birthday with my family. I am in good health, I do not take any prescirption or over the counter drugs. I am concerned about the lifestyle and health of my family, so I told them that I only wanted one present. I asked them to commit to reading “The Blood Sugar Solution” . For my next birthday I plan to ask them to implement one lifestyle change. They did agree to read the book.
I love this article! I am not a parent, but I am a holistic health coach for women and I also work in the nonprofit industry as a whole, seasonal foods education for children and low-income families. It is shocking to me to see what children eat at school nowadays, but it’s sadly just as bad at home. Thank you for spreading the world about eating real food and making this knowledge accessible.
HELLO TO ALL– WE ARE IN A ERA WHERE WE HAVE TOO MUCH HIGH TECH GIZMO’S THAT ARE CAUSING TOO MUCH SITTING AROUND. (SUCH AS THE INTERNET FUN). WE REALLY LOST OUR WAY –IN MANY WAYS–WHEN IT COMES TO OUR HEALTH MATTERS. THE THINGS I WANT TO MENTION HERE: ARE SALT,FATS, AND SUGAR AND WHEAT–ALL ARE BAD FOR THE PEOPLE TO GAIN WEIGHT AND REMAIN SLUGGISH. WE ARE PACKING UP OUR INTESTINES WITH WAY TOO MUCH FLOUR AND MANUFACTURED (BOXED)-FOODS. HIGH TIME TO BRING BACK THE FAMILY GARDEN AND FRUIT ORCHARDS. NOT EVERYONE HAS THIS KIND OF LAND THO. BUT THERE ARE MANY WAYS TO STAVE OFF SERIOUS EATING PROBLEMS– BY SITTING DOWN AND STARTING TO MAKE A LONG LIST OF HOW TO GO ABOUT IT–TO CORRECT YOUR FOOD AND BEVERAGE SELECTIONS. RESTAURANTS NEED TO ALSO FOLLOW SOME MUCH BETTER GUIDELINES– ESPECIALLY, THOSE RESTAURANTS THAT PILE ON TOO MUCH SALT, BUTTER, ETC, WHEN SERVING THE PUBLIC. MUCH OF THE FOOD PROBLEMS CAN BE RESOLVED BOTH IN PUBLIC AND AT HOME. IT IS JUST ALL UP TO THE PEOPLE TO TAKE ACTION–ALL OF US!
I’m having some difficulty with blaming ‘fast food’. In the USA, where I live, we think of McDonalds, Wendys, Burger King, Jack in the Box, and KFC as ‘fast food’ vendors. And the food we think of is burgers, burgers, burgers and chicken.
Yes they also serve sodas, french fries and desserts. Some have fresh fruit, some have fish… The mindless mantra of blaming ‘fast food’ has become tiresome and just as dishonest as the other ‘war on drugs’ type campaigns. Read on.
It is the burger that they promote, it is the burger that comes to mind.
The sizzling burger with marks from a grill and some just melting wholesome cheese…
The crispy chicken drumstick in just the right shade of brown…
Chicken and burgers are the epitome of ‘fast food’.
Is the that so bad?
Please don’t blame ‘fast food’ when you mean processed flour wheat buns with sugar right in the dough. When you mean 3 ounces of ketchup loaded with sugar, or a 40 ounce soda or a quarter pound of some potato concoction that God would not recognize. You find these things with ‘slow’ food and on the dinner table at home also. Blaming one type of vendor is not honest or productive.
Chicken and beef are good for most people. It would be nice to see more fish, pork and other meats, more fresh vegetables and fruit.
Blame individual companies when they devise a kids meal with a toy and lots of empty calories. Blame them for lots of things. Blame them when the child’s ice cream cone is nearly free and other sugary, poisonous desserts are powerfully tempting and very inexpensive. Don’t blame them for chicken or beef (if it is unadulterated with hormones & drugs & soy & other questionable ingredients).
Oh heck, go ahead and blame them- chicken & beef are excellent foods, but where are you going to find natural meat at a fast food vendor? Even the supermarket can’t be trusted. If they aren’t criminal, they are certainly immoral and the law should be changed to end the poisoning of ignorant people with dishonest labeling, unconscionable farm practices and a corrupt FDA.
And for those who keep screaming for ‘small government’ and ‘less regulation’- do you want your children eating this poison? Do you want ‘free enterprise’ to take every opportunity to profit at the cost of your family’s health? It’s time to beef up the FDA and make them accountable for the tragedy of the marketing and farming of unhealthy foods. It’s time to end the billion dollar subsidies to farm corporations that kill our citizens.