Opening Statement

Chairman Dan Burton

Subcommittee on Human Rights & Wellness

"Conquering Obesity:

The U.S. Approach to Combat this National Health Crisis"

September 15, 2004

**The Subcommittee is convening today to discuss an ever-increasing
health care concern in the United States: obesity. This disease has
become one of the most prevalent chronic health crises (cry-sees) in the
United States, and the problem has only continued to grow exponentially
over the last several decades.**

**Obesity is a complex and multilateral chronic disease that develops
from an interaction of genotype and the environment. While the current
understanding of how and why obesity develops is incomplete at this
time, it is assumed to involve the integration of social, behavioral,
cultural, physiological, metabolic, and genetic factors.**

**Obesity is defined as an excessively high amount of body fat in
relation to lean body mass. In the United States, this is categorized as
having a Body Mass Index of 30 or greater. The Body Mass Index, or BMI,
is a mathematical formula in which an individual's body weight in
kilograms is divided by the square of their height in meters.**

**According to the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey
conducted in 1999 by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS),
it is estimated that [31% percent of adults over the age of 20 in the
United States are obese.]{.underline} In addition, data also showed that
[over 65% of adults in the United States were considered to be
overweight,]{.underline} which is considered having a BMI of more than
25, or worse. According to the most recent figures from the Centers for
Disease Control (CDC), this constitutes an estimated [129.6 million
adults who are currently living at unhealthy weight levels in the United
States -- increasing over 54.9 percent in the last
decade.]{.underline}**

**This is not only a phenomenon effecting adults, but also our Nation's
children. As the survey also indicated that roughly [15% of children and
adolescents are now regarded as overweight or obese]{.underline}. Levels
of childhood overweight have nearly [tripled since 1970]{.underline}.
Left unabated, the escalating rates of obesity in the U.S. population
will place a severe burden on America's healthcare system.**

**The National Institutes of Health (NIH) *"Clinical Guidelines on the
Identification, Evaluation, and Treatment of Overweight and Obesity in
Adults"*, states that all adults aged eighteen or older who have a BMI
of 25 or greater are considered at risk for premature death and
disability as a consequence of their fat to lean muscle mass ratio.**

**Some of the many other health concerns related to obesity are: high
blood pressure, high cholesterol levels, diabetes, heart disease,
increased probability of having a stroke, and even certain types of
cancer such as breast, colon, and prostate cancers, establishing a great
need for research and prevention strategies to curb this health
epidemic.**

**Presently, the United States Department of Health and Human Services,
under the guidance of Secretary Tommy Thompson, has begun to deal with
this national health crisis head on. Not only is the Federal Government
now classifying obesity as a disease rather than a behavioral problem,
but HHS is also conducting in-depth research into the underlying
causation of obesity - not discounting a genetic or predetermined basis
for the disease.**

**Currently, the Federal Government has invested over \$400 million in
Fiscal Year 2004 on obesity research, and is projected to support
further scientific research by increasing appropriations by over 10% in
Fiscal Year 2005 to \$440.3 million -- all in an effort to better
understand this disease.**

**Not only are there detrimental health impacts associated with obesity,
but also great economic consequences on the United States taxpayer and
our health care system overall as well.**

**A study of the national costs attributed to both overweight and
obesity related services specify that medical expenses accounted for
9.1% of the total U.S. medical expenditures in 1998 -- that reached a
total dollar amount of roughly \$78.5 billion at that time, which would
equate to over \$92.6 billion in 2002 dollars. Approximately half of
these costs were compensated for by funds allocated to Medicare and
Medicaid services.**

**Medical costs associated with obesity may involve both direct costs,
which include the preventative, diagnostic, and treatment services
related to the disease, as well as indirect costs, which consist of
morbidity and mortality costs. Morbidity costs are defined as the value
of income lost from decreased productivity, restricted activity,
absenteeism, and bed delays. Mortality costs are the value of future
income lost by premature death.**

**Obesity cannot be ignored. This is especially apparent in my home
state of Indiana. According to information released by the Behavioral
Risk Factors Surveillance System at CDC, over \$1.6 billion is spent
annually by the hardworking taxpayers of Indiana due to the health
implications linked directly to obesity. Even more harrowing, in
California - the home of my esteemed colleague and Ranking Member
Congresswoman Diane Watson - approximately \$7.7 billion dollars are
spent annually -- over 10% of the total expenses in the United States!**

**Fortunately, the Federal Government and private organizations have
created several programs to combat and bring awareness to obesity. The
Division of Nutrition and Physical Activity at the CDC has developed a
program designed to help states improve their efforts to prevent obesity
by promoting good nutrition and more physical activity.**

**Currently, 20 states are enrolled in the FY 2004 activities of this
program, which include providing state residents with the knowledge and
skills they need to develop stronger intentions about weight loss and
greater self-efficacy. These initiatives also address the need for
supportive environments that further allow for healthy eating and more
physical activity to be incorporated into people's lives. To speak on
these and other CDC initiatives to prevent and combat obesity, the
Subcommittee will hear testimony from Dr. Ed Thompson, Chief of Public
Health Practice at CDC.**

Complimenting the Federal government work on obesity, there are many
organizations that are working diligently to identify the cause of
obesity and strive to put a stop to these skyrocketing rates. To explain
their work on the subject, the Subcommittee will be hearing testimony
from Morgan Downey, the Executive Director of the American Obesity
Association; Dr. Daniel Spratt, Director of Reproductive Endocrinology
at the Maine Medical Center and Representative of the Endocrine Society;
as well as Dr. Thomas Wadden, Vice-President of the North American
Association for the Study of Obesity.

As the Federal Agency charged with ensuring the safe production of food
and the management of the Federal food assistance programs, the United
States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is particularly concerned with
the alarming rates of obesity in the United States. The Subcommittee has
the distinct pleasure of receiving testimony today from the Honorable
Eric Bost, the Under Secretary for Food, Nutrition, and Consumer
Services at the USDA. Under Secretary Bost will be testifying about the
current USDA outreach programs to further curb the incidences of obesity
in our country.

**In addition to all of their current activities, I am delighted to
report that the Department of Agriculture will also be hosting a
National Obesity Prevention Conference in late October to focus on
learning from past and current research, and the need for further
scientific research to avert future trends of this disease.**

The food industry has been put under fire for producing the food
products that individuals consume in mass quantities, and thus leading
to obesity. While the safety and nutritional contents are ensured and
disclosed by these manufacturers, many individual companies and trade
associations have gone the extra mile in providing initiatives geared on
proper nutrition for the public to help do their part in fighting the
obesity war.

To better explain these community-based programs, Alison Krester
(Crest-er), the Director of Scientific Nutrition Policy with the Grocery
Manufacturers of America and Hunt Shipman, the Executive Vice-President
of Governmental Affairs and Communications with the National Food
Processors Association will be sharing testimony on their work on this
most important issue.

**It is imperative for the health and financial well-being of Americans
that we find an effective weigh to reign-in this healthcare epidemic.
Our National health agencies and non-governmental organizations are
doing their part to find means of comprehending the basis of this
disease, and combat the current and future implications of obesity.**

**I would like to thank all of our witnesses for being with us today,
and I look forward to hearing their testimony.**