Last week, Statistics Canada released figures concerning the so-called "obesity epidemic". Stats Can’s survey was based upon the actual body measurements of 35,000 Canadians during the year 2004. The statistics revealed that almost on quarter, 23 per cent, of all Canadians were clinically obese, compared to 14 per cent in 1978-79. During that same time period, obesity in children was found to almost triple; 8 per cent in 2004, up from only 3 per cent in 1978-79.
Obesity has become a major problem, not only in Canada and North american but throughout the world. Even emerging economies such as China are seeing their obesity rates climb.
Body mass index (BMI), which is a figure arrived at by dividing a person’s weight in kilograms by that person’s height in metres squared is used to determine who is obese and who isn’t. The determination of obesity has been criticized because the BMI does not differentiate between fat and muscle; only weight. Under the criteria, baseball slugger Sammy Sosa and Governor arnold Schwartzenegger are both classified as being obese.
Many jurisdictions are either passing laws or contemplating them to attempt to counter the likely result that present day children may be the first in history who can expect to have shorter life spans than their parents. While some of these laws will be sensible, many will not and will only succeed in giving the nanny state more control over the lives of its citizens.
The first laws will deal only with children and there are two reasons why this is so. It is easier for the state to justify passing measures to protect children than it is to control the lives of adults. The second reason is that regulating children will cause less embarrassment to politicians. although they spend hours on end acting childish, they are not children. With kids, politicians do not have to justify why they are imposing regulations upon citizens who may be less obese than they are. Nothing could be worse than an overweight politician declaring a war on obesity.
Unfortunately, any laws that are passed will not stop with children. Ontario made it the law that all children must wear helmets when riding bicycles. While such measures are admirable, it is only a matter of time before the lawmakers decide that adults, like children, can also suffer injury and death by not protecting their heads while cycling. The fact that adults should be free to make up their own minds will not be a consideration that will prevent further extensions. Once politicians legislate upon a certain matter they find it hard to stop. It’s like the story of the child and a chair. a toddler falls off a chair, receives minor injuries and the government passes laws to regulate the design of chairs made for children to prevent reoccurrences. It is then only a matter of time before they conclude that not only the design should be regulated but the materials that are used in making the chair need to be controlled as well. Then the legislators concluded that adults could be injured too. In the end, the government passes a "Chair act" that contains 200 sections that tell people, adults as well as children, when, where and how often they can sit in chairs. Look for the same type of legislation to rescue the public from the dangers of Big Macs and large fries.
In Ontario, we have already prohibited junk food from elementary schools. It will only be a matter of time before the powers-that-be extend this ban to high schools, then post-secondary educational institutions. Before we know it, junk food will be banned in places that adults frequent.
There are however some sensible laws that could be passed; Guam is considering such legislation. a senator who is also a physician is introducing legislation based upon a similar law in arkansas that would require schools to calculate the BMI of students and to confidentially inform children’s parents or legal guardians. This approach is refreshing because it does nothing more than put the onus for children’s health where it should be--on the parents and not on the government. But in both Ontario and Canada, this type of self reliance is frowned on; only the state can save the nation from overeating.
So eat, drink and be merry. Tomorrow it may be illegal.