CHCI Alumni Association Roundtable – America’s Future: Our Children’s Nutrition and Health
Click on the photo below for video highlights from HITN.
The CHCI Alumni Association Roundtable, with an opening by Alejandra Ceja, CHCI Alumni Association President, focused on an issue that is quickly becoming critical for our nation—particularly for the Latino community—the rising obesity of our children. As participants learned, this critical issue has social, medical, and economic consequences for the future of our children and the nation. Obesity in children has tripled in recent years. Today one child in three is overweight or obese.
The facts were clear and undisputed. The U.S. Center for Disease Control reports that today 27 percent of Latino boys between the ages of 11 and 19 are obese, up from 14 percent in 1994. The number for Latino girls is 17 percent, up from 13 percent in 1994. Obesity across all sectors of American society is currently costing $140 billion in related health care costs annually. If the trend continues uninterrupted, it is projected that this number will rise to a whopping $1 trillion by 2030.
In opening the panel discussion, moderator Juan Rivera, MD, reported that chronic childhood obesity and the related diseases of hypertension and diabetes are a pathway to premature death. He emphasized that while obesity in children has traditionally been considered an individual health problem, in reality it is a family disease and should be targeted as such. “Although our loving Latina grandmothers have taught us that an overweight child is a healthy one, science has shown us otherwise…evidence suggests that it leads to an early death,” he said.
According to data from the Center of Disease Control presented by Rep. Joe Baca, chair of the House Subcommittee on Departmental Operations, Oversight, Nutrition and Forestry, about 20 percent of children ages five to 11 are obese, and more than 18 percent of those ages 12 to 19 are obese as well. Bringing it closer to home, he noted that 26 percent of the Hispanic community at large is obese. “We like our tortillas and our traditional foods,” Baca said. He said that we need to make fresh fruits and vegetables part of our culture. “It’s too easy to grab fast food or order a pizza.” He referenced two bills in the U.S. House of Representatives that will help. One increases time for physical education in schools; the other mandates 50 hours of nutritional education for students. He said that the House is also working on additional tax incentives to grow fruits and vegetables in underserved areas. “There’s no reason that we should see a child that’s 250 pounds and only 5 years of age—that’s ridiculous,” Baca said.
Rajen Anand, Ph.D., of the Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion talked about the increased emphasis on fruits and vegetables in the revisions to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s food pyramid. He called childhood obesity a crisis in America, noting that the diseases that follow are extremely bad—diabetes, gout, and hypertension. He also expressed concern that 23 percent of American children are living in food insecurity.
Panel member Jose Andres was among the 850 chefs Michele Obama invited to the White House to become part of the solution. “Chefs haven’t been involved before,” he said. “We need to eat healthier, and even restaurants need to get the message out.” He said that one area that chefs and restaurants can help with is changing customers’ expectations of portion sizes. “The 24-ounce soda and the 36-ounce porter steak has to be something of the past,” he said. “We have to actively change the way we feed America.” 
Andres noted that between 25 and 30 percent of the healthcare costs in the United States are linked to obesity. He reported that the U.S. and Mexico have the highest rates of obesity in the world and linked it to government corn subsidies, which make soda and fast food cheaper than other, healthier foods. He noted that there is a direct link between corn subsidies and obesity rates in America and Mexico. “Why don’t we give subsidies to carrots?” he asked. “Why don’t we give subsidies to every other vegetable?”
Felix Ortiz, a New York Assemblyman, has been a tireless champion in the fight against childhood obesity. He saw his mother die of diabetes due to obesity as her kidneys and then heart failed. Ortiz was a leader in the campaign to require fast food establishments to post the nutritional value of their food. He said that we need to be creative in winning this battle. People laughed when they introduced the labeling bill. He quoted Gandhi: “First they ignore you. Then they laugh at you. Then they fight you. Then you win.” He said that we must all be responsible and that it will take corporate America working with Congress along with chefs and the medical community. Good health allows you to get a good education, he noted, and that allows you to get a good job and have a good lifestyle.
As national director of wellness initiatives for the Education division of Sodexo, a leading provider of integrated food and facilities, Roxanne Moore, MS, RD, is focused on food service at schools. She said they’ve taken a step forward in bringing nutritionally dense foods and healthier snack and beverage choices into schools; however, if healthy food doesn’t look and taste good, the kids won’t eat it. The challenge is to bring science and art together—nutritionists and chefs. She also advocates nutritional education for both students and parents—including cooking programs with children.
Sylvia Menendez Klinger, MS, RD, LD, NCSF, has made a career of communicating food issues to the Hispanic community in her position with Hispanic Food Communications, Inc. She said that the problem of obesity stems from both environmental and human behavior issues and that obesity is even more complex for Latinos. She said that individuals are at higher risk of obesity if they are poor and that being Latino is a risk factor because of how we cook our foods. Complicating the matter is the acceptance of overeating, traditional foods that are high in calories and fat, a culture that is centered around food, the acceptance of a larger body equating to wealth, and poor eating habits. To call attention to the issue, she said that tortillas are 100 calories each excluding the filling, and there are 800 calories in enchiladas. On top of that, she said that Latinos have celebrations every day—at every meal—combined with a low activity level that includes watching novellas. To resolve this she said Latinos need to reach healthy eating habits at an early age, avoid combos, dispel the myths of what makes you fat, reduce poverty, put PE back in school, and watch food portions.
This session was sponsored by Amgen, Darden Restaurants and Sodexo.
