State needs real solutions to obesity

Posey

Here we go again. Another year and Mississippi is ranked the most obese state in the nation. Four years in a row, and I'm wondering when this trend will turn around? I guess that won't happen until real solutions are implemented on a state level. So far, that hasn't happened. Sure, the Let's Go Walking campaign is inclusive to all ages with avid followers, and new physical education requirements for school-aged kids in the state garner praise, but we need something more. Those programs cannot bear the burden of solving such a chronic condition as obesity. It became quite apparent to me after writing a story about Ann Beauchamp, a 37-year-old woman who weighed 572 pounds, that many in the general public think obesity is an individual problem that should only be solved by an individual. While personal responsibility certainly plays a role, there should also be an entity people can turn to for help, especially in Mississippi. When a drug addict or alcoholic decides to get clean, they can be pointed in the right direction. That's not always the case with obese people. Adding genetics to the equation is another story altogether along with stigma and seemingly accepted discrimination of those obese. The Mississippi Health Advocacy Program recently proposed a solution to combat obesity — remove the grocery tax on healthy food and keep the tax on "junk" food. Some lawmakers are for such a change, but it remains to be seen if it will actually happen. In this society of give and take, tax-free healthy food would be an incentive. As a result, maybe more fruits and vegetables could become the snack of choice versus fattening potato chips. Some would argue that lost tax revenue from healthy foods would further hurt our economy, but consider this — obesity can preclude a laundry lists of other conditions far more costly when combined. Some of those conditions include cardiovascular disease, arthritis, high blood pressure, diabetes and even gum disease. There is no one-size-fits-all solution to this problem. It will require ideas from all sectors — politicians, doctors, communities and more. A year from now, I hope we aren't No. 1 again. Let's shoot for No. 2.