Obesity Epidemic in America

1. JULIA BRAXTON IS A SELF-DESCRIBED “HUGE CHOCOLATE FAN.”
In fact, there are not many desserts that she doesn’t like. “Brownies, cake, ice cream,
and cupcakes; I have a really big sweet tooth,” says the Virginia teen. “I also have a prob-
lem with portion sizes. I like eating a lot. I’m not really picky about what I eat. If it’s
around, I will pretty much eat it. And when I eat it, I eat all of it.”
Throw in her affinity for fries, creamy pasta, pizza and her dad’s barbecue, and Julia
pretty much admits that her eating is out of control.
It’s been that way all of her life. She weighed 10 pounds, four ounces at birth. Last
Thanksgiving, she weighed 217. Now, she tips the scale at 200. Better? Yes. But at 5 feet
4 inches tall, Julia’s body mass index (BMI) is still 35. Anything over 25 is overweight;
more than 30 is obese.
She’s fortunate. Her parents, Ronnie and Terri Braxton, are footing the bill for twice-
a-month visits to Howard University Hospital weight-loss center director Dr. Denia
Tapscott, M.D. , who is one of the best in the business. Tapscott wants Julia to slim
down to 150 pounds through lifestyle changes. That would put Julia’s BMI around
26—still technically five pounds overweight, but it would take her out of the obesity
danger zone and put her on the path to a healthy adulthood.
And with such a bright future, her health might not be the only thing at stake. A soph-
omore at the Duke Ellington School of the Arts in Washington, D.C., Julia is one of the
top vocalists at the highly selective school, and a straight-A student. She has performed
at the White House and the Kennedy Center. In 2008, she was named the most talented
youth in her state, being awarded the title of “Virginia Icon” after blowing away the
judges with her stirring rendition of the ballad “Your Daddy’s Son.”
Her vocal coach, Mary Jane Ayers, who is also the chair of vocal music at Duke
Ellington, calls Julia’s voice “exceptional. It really is. And I don’t say that very much
about anyone,” she says. “Julia has many, many possibilities to take her career in many
different directions.”
Julia is convinced that her weight could negatively impact those opportunities. So for
her, the stage is set: shed 50 pounds in one year. (EBONY will follow her progress with
a series of articles in print and online.) Weeks before her 16th birthday, she’s ready to
take her own personal stand against the weight explosion that has many referring to
today’s youth as “Generation XXXL.”
THE OBESITY EPIDEMIC
For an increasing number of young people, a “nice and healthy” weight has been
an elusive goal. Over the past three decades, childhood obesity rates in America have
tripled, and today, nearly one in three children—one-half of Black children—are over-
weight or obese. As a result, it is predicted that one-third of all children born after 1999
will suffer from diabetes at some point in their lives; many others will face chronic obe-
sity-related health problems such as heart disease, high blood pressure, high cholesterol,
cancer and asthma.
There have always been chubby kids, but pediatricians now report seeing more extreme
cases of weight gain. It’s not unusual anymore to see preteens tipping the scales at nearly
300 pounds. Teachers see the teasing and bullying; school counselors see the depression
and low self-esteem, and coaches see kids struggling to keep up, or stuck on the sidelines.
This epidemic also impacts the nation’s security. Military leaders report that obesity
is now one of the most common disqualifiers for service and the country’s competitive-
ness. According to a recent study, the health care costs of obesity-related diseases $147
billion per year. U.S. Surgeon General Regina Benjamin says that the current generation
could be on track to have a shorter lifespan than their parents.
Childhood obesity is a complex issue that requires a multifaceted solution, which will
neither be easy to find nor happen overnight. But with a renewed commitment to
exercise and eating right, experts say, America—and Black America—can all but eliminate
this epidemic within a generation.
The question is: Do we have the persistence and determination to tackle the problem?
Julia says that she does.
On Key | Julia Braxton shops with mom, Terri; Dr.
Tapscott’s evaluation; Joking with her friend India
Reynolds in her vocal music class at Duke Ellington
School of the Arts.
OBESITY EPIDEMICOne Year to Shed 50 Pounds;
For15-year-old Julia Braxton, Being‘Thick’
Could Threaten Health, Broadway Dreams
SAVING OUR CHILDREN FROM THE
IN BLACK AMERICA:
BY KEVIN CHAPPELL PHOTOGRAPHY BY ANDRÉ CHUNG
a special series
OBESITY
78 EBONY l MAY 2010 MAY 2010 l EBONY 79

2. SCHOOL DAZE
Julia’s resolve is rubbing off on others at her school. Her best
friend, India Reynolds, is now planning to lose weight. Beside the
obvious health and career benefits, there is another driving factor.
“Right now, the word ‘thick’ is in our description. I don’t think any
of us wants that to be in our description,” says India, who is also a
voice student at Duke Ellington. “We want to be ourselves. We want
people to think of us as talented people, instead of our weight getting
in our way. That’s the motivation. We are both big girls, and we have
come to live with it together. But we are focused, and are not going
to let anything get in our way. We’re in it to win it.”
It’s not like being “thick” has prevented Julia from getting the
attention of male schoolmates. She’s cute as a button, and besides,
many of her male friends, like schoolmate Lamar Gaskins, see nothing
unattractive about her weight. “She’s always complaining ‘Lamar, I
have to lose this weight.’ … I support Julia because it’s a good thing
that she wants to lose weight. But for me, when I saw her in ninth
grade, I thought she looked good then. When I look at her, I look at
how beautiful she is. She has a really great personality. I like her smile
and her voice. I don’t necessarily pay attention to that whole weight thing.”
JULIA’S GAME PLAN
Although Julia’s situation is far from the extreme cases being seen
more frequently, at the rate that she was gaining weight, Tapscott
believes that without behavior modifications in her diet, it was not
inconceivable that Julia could have topped 250 pounds by the time
she was 18.
Julia plans to increase her physical activity; she has a stair stepper at
home that she has promised herself she will use more. Her main
focus, however, will be changes in her diet. While younger kids should
focus more on physical activity, when a youth reaches 14, Tapscott
says, growth has usually stopped, making dietary changes a much
more effective weight-loss tool than exercise.
For Julia, willpower is a big issue. “The hardest part is going to be
not eating what I want to eat,” she says. “Not giving into the urges.
It’s going to be hard to walk pass the stuff that I want, and choose
the food that I need.”
To be successful in her weight loss, Julia must first get to the heart of
her eating problem. In other words, why does she overeat? Is it tied to
emotions, such as when she’s happy, stressed or sad? Or is it mindless eat-
ing? She knows that when it comes to food, she’s got issues. But why?
“There are a lot of things that she’s going to have to do,” Tapscott
says. “She’s going to have to get serious about it. And unfortunately,
it’s hard to get youth serious about anything.”
2010 REALITY CHECK
To be fair, today’s youth already have the deck stacked against
them. Children used to walk to school, had gym or recess every day
at school and spent the afternoons riding bikes or running around
their neighborhoods until dinner was ready. Getting the 60 minutes
of daily play that experts recommend—and eating a well-balanced
meal—was not a problem.
The life of today’s youth is much different. The average American
child spends nearly eight hours a day watching TV and movies, using
cell phones and computers, and playing video games. And only one-third
of high school students get the recommended levels of physical activity.
Julia lives 45 miles from her school. As a result, she spends more
than an hour each way commuting with her mom, who works as a vice
president at a national nonprofit organization. For Julia, there’s no
daily gym class or afternoons spent riding bikes, although the school’s
show choir does require some dance. On most days, her life is too hec-
tic for the traditional sit-down family dinner. Junk food has replaced
vegetables. The school lunch is heavy on calories and fat. And it doesn’t
help that there’s this kid always selling candy bars out of his locker.
‘GENETICS DIDN’T COOK DINNER’
It’s clear that Julia’s parents, like many African-American parents,
desperately want to do the right thing, but they feel like their hectic
lifestyle makes it impossible to always eat healthily. “It’s much less
expensive, and much more convenient, to eat bad stuff,” Ronnie
Braxton admits.
But they know that Julia’s health is their responsibility. And they
admit that they do feel a sense of guilt and anxiety that no matter
what they do, it won’t be enough. Life for them is struggle to balance
a healthy lifestyle with the realities of modern-day life.
Dr.Tapscott’sWeight -
Loss Plan for Julia
With the help of Denia Tapscott,
M.D., the program director for
the Howard University Hospital
Center for Wellness and Weight
Loss Surgery, Julia has already
lost 13 pounds since December.
The initial pounds are usually the
easiest, something that’s not
necessarily true of the willpower
to stick with it.
Here’s what Julia ate the day
before her doctor’s visit:
Breakfast
- Mocha coffee
- Chicken biscuit from the gas
station near house
Lunch
- Chicken wings
Dinner
- Creamy pasta dish with bacon bits
After a little give-and-take,
Tapscott recommends a variety
of lifestyle changes to help Julia
shed more pounds:
Dr. Tapscott’s
10-Point Plan of Action:
1. Stay away from packaged foods.
“Before you eat anything, ask
yourself, ‘Did God make it?’”
2. Don’t skip meals. “You become
hungrier and you gravitate toward
bad carbohydrates.”
3. Drink half your body weight (in
ounces) each day. “It prevents you
from getting dehydrated and keeps
you from getting so hungry. But
watch unnecessary fruit juices that
are loaded with sugar.”
4. Make sure all meals are low
in carbs and high in protein.
5. Wake up early enough to cook
breakfast. Her suggestions: egg
whites and turkey bacon, or a protein
shake (which could replace a meal).
6. Take a frozen meal (meat and
vegetable under 300 calories) to
school in a cooler. Warm it in the
school’s microwave for lunch.
7. Keep good snacks (fruit, trail mix,
energy drink, protein shake) on hand
for cravings between meals.
8. Avoid fast food. If she has to eat
on the run, “There’s always a salad
at these places,” Tapscott says.
“If you have to eat a hamburger,
take off half the bread.”
9. Don’t necessarily count calories,
“With the schedules of most kids,
counting calories doesn’t work,”
Tapscott says.
10. Parents have to do their part.
“Julia has to worry about what mom
and dad cook, so it’s not just her.”
The Braxtons have seen firsthand what could happen if Julia’s weight
problem festers. Her older sister tried unsuccessfully to lose weight
through eating changes. Last year, at 24, she underwent gastric bypass
surgery to get down to a healthy weight before starting a family.
To avoid the same fate, Julia’s mother says that this time around,
losing weight needs to be a family affair. “It going to be something
that has to be reinforced at home because this obesity thing has been
a multigenerational issue,” says Terri Braxton, whose mother weighed
380 pounds when she died from heart disease in 1992.
Tapscott says that it has become convenient for parents to blame
genetics for their child being overweight. “I hear it all the time,” she
says. “But genetics didn’t cook dinner. Genetics didn’t go to the
store and buy chips instead of fruit. A large part of childhood obesity
really has to do with the parents. It’s not that they are trying to make
their child overweight. They just don’t think about it.”
But—as the first lady issues a call to tackle childhood obesity—the
Braxtons are doing more than thinking about it. They are taking
action. Other African-American families would do well to join them
on their yearlong mission.
Square One | Schoolmate Lamar Gaskins has always thought Julia was
“beautiful” despite the “whole weight thing.”; Her hectic schedule (Julia at
rehearsal here) makes sticking to a healthy diet challenging.
What’s Cooking? | Julia, Terri and Ronnie Braxton are committed to moni-
toring what winds up on the grocery list.
Follow Julia’s progess at ebonyjet.com
80 EBONY l MAY 2010 MAY 2010 l EBONY 81

3. A year ago, First Lady Michelle Obama
began a national conversation about the
health of America’s children when she
broke ground on the White House Kitchen
Garden. Now, she is taking it a step further,
spearheading the most ambitious campaign
ever against childhood obesity.
She has made her goal clear: to solve the
challenge of childhood obesity within a gen-
eration so that children born today will reach
adulthood at a healthy weight. “The physical
and emotional health of an entire generation
and the economic health and security of
our nation is at stake,” she said in launching
her initiative. “It’s time for a moment of
truth for our country; it’s time we all had
a wake-up call. It’s time for us to be honest
with ourselves about how we got here.”
The first lady recently unveiled a nation-
wide campaign, Let’s Move, to combat
the epidemic of childhood obesity through
a comprehensive approach that mobilizes
public and private sector resources to
provide schools, families and communities
simple tools to help kids be more active, eat
Getting to the Root of the Matter | U.S. First Lady Michelle Obama picks up a potato during the Fall Harvest of the White House Garden
on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington last October..
better and get healthy.
At the White House launch of the Let’s
Move initiative, the first lady was joined
by members of the president’s cabinet,
members of Congress, mayors from across
the nation, students and leaders from the
media, medical, sports, entertainment and
business communities.
President Obama has also joined the
effort, signing a Presidential Memorandum
creating the first-ever Task Force on
Childhood Obesity. Across the country,
efforts are already underway:
■ By the end of the year, the Food and
Drug Administration will begin working
with retailers and manufacturers to adopt
nutritionally sound and consumer friendly
front-of-package labeling.
■ The American Beverage Association
announced that its member companies will
voluntarily put a clear, uniform, front-of-
package calorie label on all of their cans,
bottles, vending and fountain machines
within two years.
■ The American Academy of Pediatrics, in
collaboration with the broader medical
community, will educate doctors and nurses
across the country about obesity; ensure
they regularly monitor the body mass index
of children; provide counseling for healthy
eating early on; and, for the first time ever,
will even write a prescription for parents
laying out the simple things they can do to
increase healthy eating and active play.
■ To assist people with making healthier
eating and physical activity choices, the U.S.
Department of Agriculture will create the
Next Generation Food Pyramid to reflect a
nation at war with weight.
■ Many children consume as many as half
of their daily calories at school. The adminis-
tration plans to invest an additional $10
billion over 10 years, starting in 2011, to
improve the quality of the National School
Lunch and Breakfast Programs. With this
investment, more fruits, vegetables, whole
grains and low-fat dairy products will be
served in school cafeterias.
■ Major school food suppliers have voluntar-
ily committed to meet, within five years, the
Institute of Medicine’s recommendations to
decrease the amount of sugar, fat and salt
in school meals, increase whole grains and
double the amount of produce they serve
within10 years.
The first lady sat down with EBONY
Senior Editor Kevin Chappell to discuss her
war on obesity, what the administration—
and parents––can do, and the lessons she
applies from her childhood growing up on
Chicago’s South Side.
EBONY: When it comes to fighting
obesity, parents want to feed their children
healthy foods and provide opportunities for
them to exercise. But with increasingly hectic
schedules, that is difficult. What concrete
kinds of things does the administration plan
to do to try to help parents have the time,
and the guidance, to make meaningful
lifestyle changes?
MRS. OBAMA: Well, tools and infor-
mation are the first part of it because we
need to understand what our choices are
doing, and in what way. Think about how
our habits over time have changed even
from when we were little––fewer family
dinners, fewer opportunities to walk, P.E.
and recess gone from the schools, quicker
meals. I came from a household with a
grandmother who never thought eating out
was a treat. You always cooked a meal. And
we’ve completely moved from that because
of the realities of modern-day life. So people
have to kind of own up to the fact that those
changes have happened, and look at what
we’re eating, what’s in it and what it’s doing
to us. And not just assume, because it was
marketed on TV, that it’s something I should
be giving to my kids. It’s about questioning
and balance.
We’ve got to focus on schools, which is
where many kids are getting a lot of their
calories. We can’t just sort of turn our heads
to the quality of school lunches; that’s
influencing their diet, as well. So we [are]
investing [more] resources in the Child
Nutrition Reauthorization Act, which a
lot of parents may not even know actually
controls what their kids eat. We also have
to eliminate these food deserts. I don’t
have the statistics on it, but I’m sure that
there are a large number of food deserts
in African-American communities. So it is
very hard. They’re also in rural areas,
because you’re talking about distance.
But we can’t look at families and tell
them, “Feed your kids more fruits and veg-
etables,” [when] they can’t afford it or get
access to it. So we have to make it easier for
them to do the right thing. Parents will
hear the call and they’ll start trying to figure
out the cost of a head of broccoli versus
the cost of a bag of chips; we have to change
that equation. And we’re going to need help
from industry officials. We’re going to
need to subsidize more farmers markets to
locate in communities. And the last thing is
that we’ve got to get our kids moving, and
that’s something that we all need to do in
our community. And it doesn’t require a
personal trainer or a gym membership. A
lot of times, it’s dancing to the radio for 30
minutes. It’s activity. It’s not athleticism.
It’s walking up and down stairs a few times.
If you live on the third floor, you have a
gym—you can walk up, you can walk
down, you can walk up, you can walk down.
You can do that 10, 12 times, and you have
a program.
EBONY: What did you do as a kid? What
kind of exercise did you do?
MRS. OBAMA: You know, as a kid,
when we were growing up, you just played,
right? Really. You played all day, every day.
You played outside. And that’s a change,
and we have to recognize that, because our
kids aren’t playing outside. My kids never
learned how to jump double Dutch. They
still don’t know how to do it because there
isn’t a group of kids doing it. But we would
be jumping all day long. We played a game
that was just called “chase.”
EBONY: Yes, you just ran around, right?
MRS. OBAMA: You just chased. You
chased for the afternoon. You know, there
wasn’t even an object to it. You were just
being chased, and you were chasing. You
know, setting up a game of piggy on the
front lawn. You rode your bike. You rode to
[the] beach. Again, you could get on your
bike and ride around the block. You rode
through the alley. That’s when you were 10,
right? So, it’s stuff like that. And we have
to get back to figuring out how to get kids
to play more, because they shouldn’t have to
go to the gym. That’s not what kids were
meant to do. But they don’t have the envi-
ronment that just naturally encourages that.
EBONY: Because a lot of parents feel like
it’s not safe for kids to play outside, how do
you get safety back?
MRS. OBAMA: You know, that’s a
tough question. I think that’s where creativity
comes in, and that’s where there’s no one-
size-fits-all solution to this. Because I can’t tell
a mother to have her kids walk around the
block if it’s a dangerous block. I wouldn’t do
that for my kids. But again, if I’m living on
the third floor, I might do the stairs with
them. Maybe I’d walk with them. Maybe I’d
get on the bus and go to a park and walk with
them, or go to the mall, or walk around the
grocery store. I mean, these are the innovative
ways, because, again, we’re not talking about
kids having to be the next Michael Jordan or
Serena Williams. It’s just about moving and
getting, as the experts recommend, 60 min-
utes of active engagement a day in a child’s
life. So as parents we may have to be a part
of that, getting them up and moving. ■■
TheFirst Lady’sWar
onChildhoodObesity
Michelle Obama tellswhy she’son a
mission tosave the next generation
EBONY EXCLUSIVE:
““It’s activity. It’s not athleticism.
It’s walking up and down stairs a few times.
If you live on the third floor, you have a gym—
you can walk up, you can walk down, you can walk
up, you can walk down.You can do that 10,12
times, and you have a program.
MAY 2010 l EBONY 8382 EBONY l MAY 2010