Proper Response to our Student Obesity Epidemic

By Sammy Goldberg

A Full Disclosure of the evidence, as noted by Dr. Risk's letter to the Surgeon General, shows the epidemic rise in student obesity in San Mateo County schools is a primary and direct result of the Board's approval of the use of improper, inappropriate and harmful exercises, assumed to address student obesity.

The terrific failure of the Board to arrest student obesity has forced local school administrators and educators to publicly admit student obesity is out of their control.

Explanation for the failure in San Mateo County is voiced by local high school Athletic Director, Steve Sell in Emily Francher's (August 18, 2003) San Mateo County Times article entitled "The ABC's of an obesity epidemic", where Mr. Sell claims "Our kids get five exercise periods per week: two fitness classes of running or walking and three physical education classes of basketball, archery or rock climbing. But this isn't enough".

In a word, Mr. Sell advises the need for more of what we are already doing. Thus the "state of the art" insider prescriptive recommendation to parents, to counter act our student obesity epidemic is to "up the dosage of the current therapy".

Academically speaking, Mr Sell's words ask parents and other educators to "assume" the currently constituted P.E. program(s) he recommends are: · not harmful and · are most appropriate for students, including those who are obese.

Finally, absent financial constraints Mr. Sell would immediately confront our obesity epidemic by prescribing a large increase in the dosage of the current procedures in place.

SOLVING OUR STUDENT OBESITY EPIDEMIC

As both an expert in the field of obesity and a candidate, I object to and oppose

· The Board's use of the currently constituted P.E. programs to attempt to correct student obesity, and

· Mr. Sell's prescription to halt the growing epidemic.

I introduce my objections by offering pertinent portions of a recent letter sent to U.S. Surgeon General, Dr. Richard Carmona, by Expert Witness and PhD Dr. Martin Risk, where Dr. Risk states " Studies presented in Sam Goldberg's new book "The Fib Factory", demonstrate that Aerobics as popularly defined and practiced by the fat-loss or fitness industry inhibits metabolism of adipose tissue and thus prevent the typical obese and physically unfit child or adult from burning fat during exercise and for hours after the exercise bout ended."

"Two serious examples bare mentioning:

· Adoption of the industry's recommended use of aerobics by the American Heart Association to address obesity in patients with heart disease.

· Mandated use of aerobic fitness classes to address obesity in California's primary, junior high school and high school students."

Analysis

A Full Disclosure of the evidence, as noted by Dr. Risk's letter to the Surgeon General, shows the epidemic rise in student obesity in San Mateo County schools is a primary and direct result of the Board's approval of the use of improper, inappropriate and harmful exercises, assumed to address student obesity. Thus our obese students find themselves trapped in a vicious cycle of increasing obesity, where these students are forced (mandated by the trustees) to participate in physical exercises that are known to prevent them

· from burning fat during exercise and for hours after the exercise bout ended,

· while the depletion of available carbohydrates, the actual fuel utilized during the exercise bout makes the participants tired and hungry.

Solving the Problem(Within One Year)

A rapid re-education on obesity, throughout the county for parents of obese students, the local PTA, school heath-care workers, librarians, science and P.E. teachers and Principals on the Fat-Loss Facts of Life, begins with the San Mateo County Emergency Student Obesity Summit (ESOS) which offers

· A review, in lay terms of the evidence sent to the US Surgeon General, thereby placing the county (Board) "On Notice" as to the harmful and inappropriate nature of their/our current program(s). · A follow-up series of seminars held at each school, within the county live and/or via the internet and/or local public access television stations. · New text books will fully disclose the appropriate and non-harmful exercise program known as the GTS method, and will be available almost immediately throughout the county