Energy Express by Marilynn Preston

Every year, around the start of the November-December holidays, we're all forced to gobble up this depressing piece of news:

Between Thanksgiving and New Year's, the average American gains between 7 to 15 pounds.

This is icing on the cake when it comes to our nation's ability to put on pounds quicker than any other. For all the "we're number one" fans out there, think about this next time you punch your finger into the air: If current trends continue, 103 million American adults — that's 43 percent of our population — will be considered obese by 2018.

In 2008, just one year ago, that number weighed in at 31 percent. And that's not even counting our roly-poly little ones.

Obesity, it turns out, is growing faster than any other public health condition in the nation's history, according to Kenneth E. Thorpe, professor of public health at Emory University, as reported by The New York Times.

In the context of health care reform, consider this: It's not just the explosion of technology that makes health care so expensive. It's the horrifyingly high number of dollars it takes to treat the rising numbers of Americans with diabetes, high blood pressure and other chronic diseases that are linked to our skyrocketing obesity, says Thorpe, an expert on the cost of treating chronic disease.

To be fair, Thorpe didn't actually say horrifying. He's a scientist. Horrifying is my word. Chronic disease is often the sad, predictable result of a sedentary lifestyle.

So what's in the pending health care reform bill about preventing obesity?

Are there strong measures taken to create positive behavioral changes, something akin to the wildly successful anti-smoking campaign?

Almost nothing. Doo-dah. Squat.

Instead of a bold full-scale recognition that obesity is a growing national health problem, Thorpe says the health care bills in Congress include a very limited campaign, a few meager programs that he characterizes as community-centered pilot projects with inadequate funding.

Boo. Hiss. MISSED OPPORTUNITY.

Where are the strong measures that would take on the corporate interests who fatten their bottom lines by fattening ours?

What happened to taxing sugary sodas and other fake foods that screw up our body's ability to regulate its own weight?

Why aren't we hearing about compassionate and innovative wellness-based lifestyle programs and incentives to help people make healthier choices?

Pass the pecan pie, I'm confused.

This isn't about attacking fat people.

Or discriminating against super jumbo movie popcorn. I know lots of healthy people who register too many pounds on the scale. Fit and fat are not natural enemies. But obesity is often the gateway to chronic disease. And chronic disease isn't a mystery, as cancer is. It can be effectively treated. It requires an enlightened Congress that is brave and honest enough to make it part of the nation's mission.

The risk of such chronic problems as diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease and poor circulation can be significantly lowered with a wellness-based health care reform bill that promotes real food, regular exercise and meaningful work-play-family balance.

Fat chance.

EN/X STRESSBUSTER: COUNT BREATHES INSTEAD OF CALORIES

If the idea of gaining 7 to 15 pounds this holiday season takes your breath away, try this simple exercise next time you feel the need to eat more junk than you want to:

Sit comfortably, back straight, body relaxed, eyes closed. Take a few deep calming breaths, feeling your belly rise as you inhale, fall as you exhale. Then let the breath come naturally. Count one to yourself as you exhale. The next time, extend your exhale, count two. Continue to extend and count exhalations only, up to five. Then begin again, with a one count.

Continue this simple yet profound technique for calming your mind and raising your consciousness until the urge to eat is replaced by a feeling of harmony and joy. Open your eyes.

EAT THIS UP! RALLY AROUND THE RAMEKIN

Looking for a way to have your cake and eat it without the guilt? Serve dessert in small ramekins. Eat slowly. For advanced practitioners, fill the ramekin with fresh fruit.

ENERGY EXPRESS-O! CONTACT YOUR CONGRESSPERSON TODAY!

"It is easy to sit up and take notice; what is difficult is getting up and taking action." — Al Batt

Marilynn Preston — fitness expert, personal trainer and speaker on healthy lifestyle issues — is the creator of Energy Express, the longest-running syndicated fitness column in the country. She has a website, http://marilynnpreston.com and welcomes reader questions, which can be sent to MyEnergyExpress@aol.com. To find out more about Preston and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

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