PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Experts weigh the heavy impact words have when creating policies for better health

Groups provide policymakers new rules for better addressing weight-related health issues

2011-10-22
(Press-News.org) WASHINGTON, D.C., October 20, 2011 – Are words weighing down America's ability to improve its health? According to a group of weight and health experts assembled by the Strategies to Overcome and Prevent (STOP) Obesity Alliance, the answer is yes. There is a need for media and policymakers to more responsibly address weight-related health issues, the experts said, and remove the verbal barriers that are getting in the way of a more informed, responsible conversation.

"With chronic diseases plaguing our health and driving up costs, we can no longer afford to overlook how weight relates to health," said Alliance Director Christine Ferguson, J.D. "Improving how we talk about weight and health in media and policy is step one to how we will improve our health."

The STOP Obesity Alliance, in conjunction with the National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA), developed the new weight and health discussion guidelines for policymakers, released today during a national webinar. The new guidelines are designed to help policymakers more responsibly address weight-related health issues.

The recommendations emphasize that despite the pervasiveness of inaccurate depictions of weight-related issues in the media and popular culture, policymakers need to understand that both individual choices and societal factors impact weight status. Specifically, the recommendations call for policymakers to responsibly address weight and health by adhering to the following evidence-based principles when discussing and developing weight-related health policies:

Weight is about health, not appearance. Weight status does not necessarily reflect health status. It takes more than willpower to maintain a healthy weight—a strong support system is necessary. Body size and shape are influenced by inherited and environmental factors. BMI is one of many factors in determining a person's weight status as it relates to health. Incremental and sustained weight loss advised by a doctor is safe and healthy—whereas crash diets are dangerous and can contribute to negative health outcomes.

The STOP Obesity Alliance and its Task Force on Women strongly support the new guidelines and are encouraging the public to take action in helping to gain their acceptance among policymakers. The more than 20 groups that make up the Task Force are promoting a "Call to Action," asking individuals to contact their legislators and urge them to review and follow the recommendations.

"We must all make good, responsible choices when it comes to our health, but we also need policies that will support environments where good choices are possible," said Ferguson. "Until legislators focus on weight as a matter of health, policies will not be effective in addressing the nation's serious weight-related health challenges."

INFORMATION:

Click here to read the full set of recommendations: http://www.stopobesityalliance.org/

About the STOP Obesity Alliance

The Strategies to Overcome and Prevent (STOP) Obesity Alliance is a collaboration of more than 50 consumer, provider, government, labor, business, health insurers and quality-of-care organizations united to drive innovative and practical strategies that combat obesity. The Alliance receives funding from founding sponsor, Sanofi, and supporting sponsor, Allergan, Inc. For more information, visit www.stopobesityalliance.org.

END



ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Phuket.Net - Phuket Vegetarian Festival

2011-10-22
The Vegetarian festival and the rituals involved are believed to give good luck to those who take part. This is for those who are of Chinese heritage, who will observe a strict vegetarian diet or alternatively a vegan diet. The event is designed to cleanse the soul, along with the rituals that are performed at temples. Visitors to the area can sample some of the traditional vegetarian foods that will be on offer at the restaurants and street stalls. Phuket has many hotels which cater for a variety of needs. Low-cost budget options are popular as they are comfortable ...

Successful pregnancy possible after kidney transplant

2011-10-22
A new study recently published in the American Journal of Transplantation reveals that the ability to successfully carry a pregnancy after kidney transplantation is very high, with 73.5% live birth rates. Researchers led by Dorry Segev, MD, PhD, of Johns Hopkins University performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of articles published between 2000 and 2010 that reported pregnancy-related outcomes among KT recipients. Results found that a successful pregnancy is possible after receiving a kidney transplant, although the relatively high rate of medical complications ...

Jackpot Joy Offer GBP20 Each to Refer a Friend

2011-10-22
Each and every month online gaming sites announce new promotions in a bid to entice new players to their site and prevent their current players from drifting to their rival brands and at Jackpot Joy Bingo this month players are being offered the chance to earn some free bingo credits by recommending the site to a friend. The site will reward any current player and their recommended friend GBP20 each in credit for the site if they sign up. This offers new players the chance to experience the site in full, trying out all of the games on offer and a chance to attempt to win ...

I vs. we: Individuals perform better when focused on team's effort

I vs. we: Individuals perform better when focused on teams effort
2011-10-22
EAST LANSING, Mich. — Individuals perform better and are more confident when they practice motivational tactics focused not on them but on the team they belong to, according to a recently published study by Michigan State University researchers. The findings, published in the Journal of Sports Sciences and led by Veronica Son and Deborah Feltz of the Department of Kinesiology, reveal that simply changing "I" to "we" in self-talk motivational statements has a significant impact on an individual's – and thus a group's – performance. Son, a doctoral student in the Department ...

Parcel2Go Applauds North East Exporting Initiative

2011-10-22
Bolton-based international parcel delivery expert Parcel2Go has called on businesses in the North East to take advantage of a new scheme designed to help companies export their goods to new markets. The North East Chamber of Commerce has officially launched NECC Global, two support packages designed to help small, medium and large businesses in the region to increase the volume of goods they export. Parcel2Go has been helping businesses to send goods to countries all over the world for more than 20 years and now handles in excess of two million parcels every year. ...

Can aromatherapy produce harmful indoor air pollutants?

Can aromatherapy produce harmful indoor air pollutants?
2011-10-22
New Rochelle, NY, October 20, 2011—Spas that offer massage therapy using fragrant essential oils, called aromatherapy, may have elevated levels of potentially harmful indoor air pollutants such as volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and ultrafine particles, according to an article in Environmental Engineering Science, a peer-reviewed journal published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.. The article is available free online at www.liebertpub.com/ees Fragrant essential oils, derived from plants, may release various VOCs into the air. VOC degradation caused by the reaction of these ...

Sportingbet's Take-Over Deals on a Halt, Reveals OnlineCasinosRealMoney.com

2011-10-22
Online gaming company Sportingbet, made a recent purchase deal with two companies, Scandic Bookmakers and Danbook. The deal was finalized shortly after Ladbrokes called off its plan to take-over Sportingbet. The CEO of Ladbrokes Richard Glynn said that the potential risks and benefits associated with the deal were quite clear to the company. After analyzing the situation, the Ladbrokes team failed to chalk out a plan that would enhance the share value of the company under an accepted regulatory framework. Key Reasons for the Deal's Failure The key factor behind ...

Podiatrist in New York City Makes Receiving Foot Care Easier

2011-10-22
Dr. Gary Evans, podiatrist in New York City, introduces a new online appointment requesting feature for busy, on the run patients. With problems arising at any point of the day, patients can now request appointments online via the practice's website. When symptoms arise, patients can simply submit an appointment request via the practice's website without altering their schedule. The practice's new appointment requesting feature has allowed Dr. Gary Evans to offer more convenient and easy ways for patients to make appointments with him. "My patients can often ...

First Ebola-like virus native to Europe discovered

2011-10-22
A team of international researchers has discovered a new Ebola-like virus – Lloviu virus -- in bats from northern Spain. Lloviu virus is the first known filovirus native to Europe, they report in a study published in the journal PLOS Pathogens on Octobr 20th. The study was a collaboration among scientists at the Center for Infection and Immunity (CII) at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health, the Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII) in Spain, Roche Life Sciences, Centro de Investigación Príncipe Felipe, Grupo Asturiano para el Estudio y Conservación ...

Texas A&M study: Hunters present at least 800 years earlier than previously thought

2011-10-22
COLLEGE STATION, Oct. 20, 2011 — The tip of a bone point fragment found embedded in a mastodon rib from an archaeological site in Washington state shows that hunters were present in North America at least 800 years before Clovis, confirming that the first inhabitants arrived earlier to North America than previously thought, says a team of researchers led by a Texas A&M University archaeologist. Michael Waters, director of the Center for the Study of the First Americans in the Department of Anthropology at Texas A&M, and colleagues from Colorado, Washington and Denmark ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Corpse flowers are threatened by spotty recordkeeping

Riding the AI wave toward rapid, precise ocean simulations

Are lifetimes of big appliances really shrinking?

Pink skies

Monkeys are world’s best yodellers - new research

Key differences between visual- and memory-led Alzheimer’s discovered

% weight loss targets in obesity management – is this the wrong objective?

An app can change how you see yourself at work

NYC speed cameras take six months to change driver behavior, effects vary by neighborhood, new study reveals

New research shows that propaganda is on the rise in China

Even the richest Americans face shorter lifespans than their European counterparts, study finds

Novel genes linked to rare childhood diarrhea

New computer model reveals how Bronze Age Scandinavians could have crossed the sea

Novel point-of-care technology delivers accurate HIV results in minutes

Researchers reveal key brain differences to explain why Ritalin helps improve focus in some more than others

Study finds nearly five-fold increase in hospitalizations for common cause of stroke

Study reveals how alcohol abuse damages cognition

Medicinal cannabis is linked to long-term benefits in health-related quality of life

Microplastics detected in cat placentas and fetuses during early pregnancy

Ancient amphibians as big as alligators died in mass mortality event in Triassic Wyoming

Scientists uncover the first clear evidence of air sacs in the fossilized bones of alvarezsaurian dinosaurs: the "hollow bones" which help modern day birds to fly

Alcohol makes male flies sexy

TB patients globally often incur "catastrophic costs" of up to $11,329 USD, despite many countries offering free treatment, with predominant drivers of cost being hospitalization and loss of income

Study links teen girls’ screen time to sleep disruptions and depression

Scientists unveil starfish-inspired wearable tech for heart monitoring

Footprints reveal prehistoric Scottish lagoons were stomping grounds for giant Jurassic dinosaurs

AI effectively predicts dementia risk in American Indian/Alaska Native elders

First guideline on newborn screening for cystic fibrosis calls for changes in practice to improve outcomes

Existing international law can help secure peace and security in outer space, study shows

Pinning down the process of West Nile virus transmission

[Press-News.org] Experts weigh the heavy impact words have when creating policies for better health
Groups provide policymakers new rules for better addressing weight-related health issues