Mar 11, 2008 6:20 pm US/Central
House Panel Rejects Plan To Track Obesity In Kids
ST. PAUL (AP) ―
A plan to monitor childhood obesity by collecting the body-mass index measurements of Minnesota children went over like diet ice cream in a House panel on Tuesday.
Objections came from both sides of the aisle and several experts. After some debate, the Public Health Finance Division voted 9-5 to strip the provision from a larger public health bill. But the child body-mass measurements are still alive in a Senate bill.
Body mass index is a formula that measures body fat.
The biggest worry from those who objected: The numbers could shame overweight children and teenagers.
"They know in the third grade that they're fat. They know that," said Rep. Neil Peterson, R-Bloomington, who said he has female relatives with eating disorders. "Now you're going to line 'em up in class and do monitoring so you reinforce that."
States including Arkansas have gone after overweight children with obesity report cards and other measures. Slimming down Minnesota's population would save money and improve health, said Rep. Diane Loeffler, the bill's House sponsor.
Loeffler did not set out to monitor individual children or make their status public in the schools. Instead, she said the data would be used to shape efforts to fight childhood obesity.
"It's at an epidemic level -- we are seeing now children who are getting adult-onset diabetes in their teens that we never used to see until they were in their fifties," said Loeffler, DFL-Minneapolis. "It's really threatening the health of our children."
But psychotherapist Kathy Kater warned that the focus on weight could backfire.
"Unhappiness about weight is a catalyst for disordered eating, weight gain and poorer overall health," said Kater, who writes and speaks about children and weight. "Worry about weight, it turns out, is a self-fulfilling prophecy."
Others said they were concerned about the cost and lack of parental consent.
"Personally, I'm a big advocate of phy ed," said Rep. Dan Severson, R-Sauk Rapids. "Get 'em out, let 'em run and burn up some of those calories."
The surviving part of Loeffler's bill -- which passed -- aims to get at least half of Minnesota's population into healthy weight range by 2020. Two-thirds of adults were overweight or obese in 2000, according to the state Health Department.
(© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
Wis., Minn. Lawmakers Trying To Resolve Tax Issue 14 mins ago
Stumble It!
