1. No Discrimination
    Marie Dufour, RD Marie Dufour, RD Paraguay says:
    August 11, 2009 at 7:47 AM

    The comments against the nomination of Dr. Benjamin have nothing to do with discrimination or weight bias.  The comments, at least on my part, were more of a critique of our society's fatalistic acceptance of obesity as an acceptable, normal, and no-consequence condition.  We all know that this is not the case and that obesity alone is the major cause for diabetes, myocardial infarction, stroke, and-to a lesser degree-cancer.   We also know that obesity is largely a result of excessively rich diets and sedentary lifestyles, added to increasingly resisting genetics.
    There is no doubt that Dr. Benjamin is a very capable individual, intelligent and with the health of our nation at heart.  She has the opportunity to derail America's acceptance of obesity as a fait-accompli.  Like her predecessor, Dr. C. Everett Koop who led Americans in adopting non-smoking behaviors and regulations,  Dr. Benjamin can be the torch-bearer who will lead Americans into adopting at least one of the 3 remaining healthy lifestyle factors: following a healthy diet, being physically active, and keeping a BMI under 30.  
    I know she can; I hope she will.
    (Marie Dufour, RD, FACMPE - DOMINO Health Foundation - Currently in Paraguay - www.dominohealth.org)

    Reply
    • No discrimination!?
      Sandra Sandra Canada says:
      August 12, 2009 at 12:14 PM

      Your statement that our society posesses a "fatalistic acceptance" of obesity puzzles and shocks me. Society's most commonly held view of people who are overweight is that they are immoral. People who are overweight may be told many times that a simple solution to their problem exists, many people have made fortunes off them (including medical, pharmaceutical, surgical, and dietetical professionals), but am I wrong in my non-professional belief that the great majority of people who lose weight on "diets" gain all of it back or more? I know, you teach them that they must adopt a whole new lifestyle, etc, etc. But do you move stores that sell produce into poor urban neighborhoods? Do you take advertisements off their little friend's TV shows when they visit? I know obesity is killing us--the poor faster than the rest of you. Dieticians, in my experience, have been the most unrealistic professionals I have ever dealt with. More safe play outside for children!

      Reply
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