Larry King And Health Leaders Address Child And Adult Obesity In Our Communities

“Healthcare leaders gathered at the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California Health Science campus to discuss the critical issue of obesity and the challenges it brings to uninsured, under-insured, and lower-income communities. According to LA Public Health, one out of every five adults in LA County is obese (2005). ‘Obesity is the most common answer I am hearing to my questions about the state of poor health in the United States, especially in our young kids. It is critical for us to better educate families on how to eat better and give people better tools to help themselves. To hear that our kids' lifespan is going to be shorter than their parents' due to poor eating habits is unthinkable. We have to do something,’ said Larry King, talk show host and founder of the Larry King Cardiac Foundation. The Southern California Health Leadership Panel's meeting - Health Crisis: Obesity and its Effect on Public Health Care Systems. What's Next? - was hosted by Larry King and the Larry King Cardiac Foundation in partnership with Los Angeles-based COPE Health Solutions, the Los Angeles County + University of Southern California (LAC+USC) Healthcare Network and the Keck School of Medicine of USC. Today's panel is meant to raise awareness of a health crisis that is preventable if children and adults have access to knowledge and health care critical to maintaining a healthy way of living. Being overweight or obese accounts for an estimated 3.43 billion in health care expenditures annually, or 9% of total health care costs (LA Public Health, 2003).”

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/129531.php