Date: Wed, 10 Sep 2014 16:35:47 -0400
From: deloispopp
Subject: Obesity Coordinator comments
AMEN to “connectnc.net” 9/10/14 post.
In reading the comments from Kathy Hotelling, (9/8/14 post) – I concur 100% with the fact that obesity is a problem in our society, and have no reason to question her statistics relating to where Chatham County stands in this regard. However, it is not clear what her comments relate to in connection with the Obesity Coordinator and misinformation. There is nothing in her post to indicate she is for or against the obesity coordinator for Chatham County – or what the misinterpretations are.
Karen Crowell (9/9/09 post) indicates in her post that risk factors of obesity include, among others, being overweight, exercising too little and having high blood pressure and cholesterol levels.. Lifestyle choices are important for reducing risk or managing the disease. She further quotes from an article that states many North Carolinians lack access to medical care or programs to help them reduce the risk or managing the disease.
All of this is certainly true; however, the facts are: people know they should eat healthy food. Most, if not all, Chatham County citizens have access to good health care. We have clinics in rural areas, we are close to several great medical centers – Duke, UNCH, Wake Med, Rex, etc, and we have a state of the art hospital here in Chatham County. We also have excellent libraries in Chatham County. The Internet is an excellent source of information as well. Most of those obese people are walking around with cell phones loaded with APS, and have home computers. They already have access to any information that an obesity coordinator can give them. We have major health care in our area; we are not an isolated impoverished community without access to good doctors.
A good old southern expression is “you can lead a horse to water, but you cannot make him drink.†In other words, you can put all this information out there, but you cannot force people to change their habits. People are continually inundated with all types of diets on the Internet, in magazines, our First Lady, TV, etc. People have tried diet after diet and failed… why?? Because, the fact is, we all love to eat (in excess) unhealthy, fattening food.
I will repeat a comment I posted when I first heard of this. We are bombarded on TV, our social services, school leaders, etc., that one of every six children in our county (and country) goes to bed hungry each night. Our local schools send food home with some children so they can eat at night and over the weekends and during the summer months. This is what we need to focus on. Not the person who chooses to eat potato chips instead of an apple; and I put emphasis on the word “chooses†. A pound of potato chips is a lot more expensive than a pound of apples or bananas; so money cannot be the issue on this.
I will relay a personal story. My cousin’s wife (from California) was well over 350 pounds and could hardly manipulate herself around to do the necessary things that she had to do to care for 2 children, work at public work, and look after her home. One day she was getting off the bus after work and once she was at home, heard a knock on the door. When she opened the door, the gentleman standing there said “I think I can help you if you give me a few minutes of your time.†…. After questioning him and finding out what his intentions were, she eventually joined a group called Over-eaters Anonymous that dealt with food addiction. Over the course of a couple of years, she lost down to 135 pounds.
Obesity is a problem much the same as alcoholism and drug addiction. I have heard – but cannot site or validate the source – that Oreo cookies are more addictive than cocaine?
Perhaps one or more of our Chatlisters, maybe Kathy Hotelling or Karen Crowell, has the knowledge and education, and time to start such a group here in Chatham County. We should not have to pay an Obesity Coordinator to duplicate information already available from multiple sources, and which evidently is not working.
I would suggest that obese people (especially morbidly obese people) need a support system such as AA and NA – all volunteer supporters, staff and members – and not an tax payer funded Obesity Coordinator.