Date: 2010-02-23
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Madam Speaker. I stand before you today in support of H. Res. 274 "Expressing support for designation of March as National Nutrition Month." I would like to begin by thanking my colleague Representative KATHY CASTOR for introducing this resolution in the House of Representatives. as it is important that we acknowledge and recognize the importance of good nutrition toward maintaining a healthy and productive nation. Furthermore. it is important that we continue to educate and encourage our local communities to raise their awareness of nutritional health and encourage an expanded knowledge within the community regarding the benefits of proper nutrition. By improving nutrition standards within our communities we can help support people in their efforts toward living a long. healthy and productive life. Unfortunately. obesity and poor nutrition among citizens is especially prevalent in my home city of Houston. Texas. For years Houston has been consistently rated as the "fattest city in America." Currently. 58 percent of adults and 39 percent of children are classified as overweight or obese in the Greater Houston community. This resolution would also seek to help the people of my district in Houston by raising the awareness of nutritional health issues. It is estimated that since 1980. obesity rates for adults have doubled and obesity rates for children have nearly tripled due to poor nutrition and sedentary lifestyles in the United States. Furthermore. four of the top ten causes of death including heart disease. cancer. stroke and diabetes have been attributed to factors surrounding a persons nutrition and diet. These four health conditions are estimated to cost the United States over $600 billion each year in medical expenses and lost productivity. These are several of the major factors highlighting the importance of good nutrition in our nation. It also shows the importance of making informed food choices and developing sound eating and physical activity habits. In conjunction with good nutrition. it is also important that citizens take on healthy physical activity on a regular basis to maintain good health. These health and nutrition factors take an even greater level of importance when we discuss the effects of nutrition on our nations children. Poor nutrition and lack of exercise in schoolage children has been shown to cause a decrease in academic performance in addition to behavioral problems. In younger children. poor nutrition can manifest itself in more severe ways. Lack of proper nutrition also makes young children more prone to illness and disease and inhibits childrens cognitive development. Furthermore it is important that we recognize the gaps in school lunch programs at public schools. The National School Lunch Program was designed to provide low cost or free school lunch meals to qualified students through subsidies given to schools. In many school districts however. this poses a problem as children are only in school around 180 days out of the year. How is this federally mandated program supposed to adequately provide for and supplement childrens diets when it is only available to them for half of the year? It is vitally important that we work together as a nation to improve nutrition standards across the board. particularly for children and the elderly. It is appalling to me that children still go hungry in this great nation and it is our duty to ensure that all children receive proper nutrition in addition to great physical education in schools. Officially establishing the month of March as "National Nutrition Month" would seek to improve the lives of our citizens as well as increase our citizens awareness of the importance of good nutrition in living a healthy and productive life. Furthermore. by providing education and instruction to adults and children alike. we can help to ensure that the United States continues to serve as a model of balanced nutrition to the world. I ask my colleagues for their support of this legislation as well as their support for the improving nutrition across our country. I strongly urge you to support this resolution.