EUPres Mtg2 Berman

Rick BermanCenter forConsumer FreedomBerman@ConsumerFreedom.com: 

Rick Berman Center for Consumer Freedom Berman@ConsumerFreedom.com

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The Issue

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'Whether it’s influenza or plague from the Middle Ages – they are not as serious as the epidemic of obesity.' — Director of the CDC

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'Obesity is the terror within.' -- US Surgeon General, 2003-2006

An Epidemic of Obesity Myths: 

An Epidemic of Obesity Myths Obesity kills 400,000 Americans a year Obesity costs the US economy $117 billion 65% of Americans are overweight or obese Overeating is the primary cause of obesity Type 2 Diabetes is Epidemic Soda causes childhood obesity Food can be addictive This generation of children will die young Obesity is a 'disease'

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Obesity death toll was vastly inflated April 20, 2005

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'After decades of dire warnings to slim down if we want to survive to a ripe old age, it now turns out that a modest amount of ‘excess’ weight may actually be good for you.' -- New York Times editorial

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'the prevalence of diabetes … did not appear to increase substantially during the 1990s.' -- CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 2003

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'Type 2 diabetes is still a rare condition [in children].' -- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2005

Childhood “Diseases”: 

Childhood 'Diseases' Autism Cerebral Palsy Type 2 Diabetes SIDS Birth Defects Put in order of frequency of occurrence

Childhood “Diseases”: 

Childhood 'Diseases' 7.2 Incidence Per 100,000 Kids

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'A remarkable finding is that heavy people who are fit have lower risk than thin people who are unfit.' -- Food Fight by Dr. Kelly Brownell

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-- JAMA, 1999

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Where Does Hype Lead Us?

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'Salad Line' Commercial SaladLineCut5FinalAudBIG.wmv

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Why the hype?

American Obesity AssociationRedefining obesity as a disease: 

American Obesity Association Redefining obesity as a disease 'Obesity is not a behavior ... Obesity is a fatal, chronic, relapsing disease ... a global phenomenon.' AOA president Morgan Downey, October 23 FDA hearing

Who Funds AOA?: 

Who Funds AOA? Sanofi-Aventis (Accomplia) Roche  (Xenical) Ortho-McNeil (Topomax) Abbott Laboratories (Meridia, Ensure) Knoll (Meridia andamp; Reductil) Roche  (Xenical) Wyeth-Ayerst Laboratories (Phen-phen) Tanita (scales andamp; body-fat measuring devices) GlaxoSmithKline (Xenical) Weight Watchers Jenny Craig SlimFast

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'Many, if not most, high-profile obesity researchers are either consultants to the diet, food, or pharmaceutical industry, or conduct research for those industries.' -- Ellen Ruppel Shell, The Hungry Gene

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'Some of the world's most prominent obesity experts, with backing from the drug industry and medical societies, defined obesity as a stand-alone 'disease' … these experts helped create a billion-dollar market for the drugs.' -- Seattle Times, 2005

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International Obesity Task Force (IOTF): 75 percent of funding from drug industry

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'The IOTF paper became the centrepiece of the EU platform [on Diet, Physical Activity and Health] launch and was widely reported around the world.' -- IOTF Newsletter

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'The Government's anti-obesity guru [Phillip James] was at the centre of a sleaze row last night after it was revealed he has been paid undisclosed consultancy fees by makers of weight-loss drugs.' -- The Mail On Sunday, 2005

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Food vs. ? Another Perspective

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'Rising cigarette prices account for as much as 20% of increasing BMI.' National Bureau of Economic Research

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'Increases in maternal employment may account for some of the rise in childhood obesity.' -- Annual Review of Public Health, 2005

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248 million computer and video games were sold in 2004 -- nearly two games for every home in America.

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'habitual activity plays an important role in weight gain, with no parallel evidence that energy intake had a similar role' -- Lancet, 2005

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'Evidence for the association between sugar-sweetened drink consumption and obesity is inconclusive.' -- CDC study, 2005

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'Actual levels of caloric intake among the young haven't appreciably changed over the last twenty years.' ― Former FDA Commissioner Mark Mcclellan

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Food Advertising

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'There is only circumstantial evidence that the ads cause poor eating.' -- Food Fight by Dr. Kelly Brownell -- Ministry of Health New Zealand

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'there is no good evidence that advertising has a substantial influence on children's food consumption.' Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, 2004

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'[December’s] report on marketing food to children from the National Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Medicine does not say that Madison Avenue is making our kids fat, a widespread interpretation.' -- Former Director of the National Institutes of Health Bernadine Healy

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Regulations: The alcohol example

Alcohol Regulations: 

Alcohol Regulations Taxes Marketing restrictions Age limits Retailer liability Warning labels

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Success?

“Toxic Food” Environment: 

'Toxic Food' Environment Food is inexpensive Food is too accessible Food is engineered to taste good Food is too heavily marketed

Modern Lifestyle: 

Modern Lifestyle Moving walkways Electric staplers Rolling luggage Power lawnmower Remote control Etc. Etc. Etc.

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Environmental Approach: One Size Fits All Targeting

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Sweden: 0.02% Blood-Alcohol Concentration

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Sweden: Average alcohol-related fatality: 0.16% BAC

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Statistically significant risk of death only appears at BMI of 35

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Flegal, K. M. et al. JAMA 2005;293:1861-1867. Estimated Numbers of Excess Deaths in 2000 in the United States

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Solution?

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Denial of services Restate the problem User taxes

Rick BermanCenter forConsumer FreedomBerman@ConsumerFreedom.com: 

Rick Berman Center for Consumer Freedom Berman@ConsumerFreedom.com