Dear Mrs. Obama...

Dear Mrs. Obama, I want to commend you on your work in fighting childhood obesity in our country and the creation of Let’s Move! It is an important topic in our world today and something that all Americans and nations throughout the world can learn from. I have been doing some research on childhood obesity and how television and advertising affect this worldwide epidemic. I believe education and good habits need to start in the home. Television is a medium that we have ready access to in our homes and it is a parent or guardian’s responsibility to monitor and control what children are viewing on television as well as how much television they are watching. Unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be much control in what advertising is being targeted to children. If you sit and watch children’s programming, the amount of unhealthy food and snack options that are peddled to them is astounding. We need to strongly encourage corporations to take greater responsibility, not only in how they target their marketing strategies to children on television, but also in the creation and content of the food products they are advertising to children and their families. We need more healthy alternatives! As an advocate for health and wellness, I am asking that you take a look at this issue and how it affects the childhood obesity rate in our country. Advertising and fast food are big business in this country, particularly with our busy lifestyles. It has become an easy option for busy moms and dads to pick up a pizza or go through the drive thru on the way home from work. I have been guilty of this myself on numerous occasions. I have seen some evidence of companies who are making more healthy alternatives available to their customers, such as McDonald’s and their happy meal options with fruit, etc. Corporate America knows how to make a buck and what weaknesses to capitalize on in the quest for the almighty dollar. It’s unfortunate that many of the healthy alternatives cost more than the less healthy options marketed to us on a daily basis. This seems like such a contradiction when we are a nation obsessed with appearance and health in the media, yet you look at the majority of Americans adults and a growing number of children who are considered overweight or obese. What will our nation look like in 20 years? I believe that if we do not hold corporations responsible for their unhealthy practices, we will be a much weaker nation in the coming decade. Are we so concerned with making money that we are willing to contribute to the decline in health of the rising generation? I hope you will look at the research on this and find a way to open the dialogue on this important matter. Keep up the good work!