Speaking at an HHS-sponsored conference on “Obesity and the Built
Environment,” Thompson called on the nation to reach a “tipping
point” in obesity awareness that will speed up progress on slimming
down and saving millions of lives and billions of dollars.
Thompson said 125 million Americans have at least one
chronic illness and that 70 percent will die prematurely because of it.
At the
root of the chronic
disease issue, he said, are smoking and obesity, the two biggest killers,
both within people’s power to stop.
He said he has asked business leaders to set aside time in their workplaces
for employees to exercise every day and said insurance companies should
give people discounts for improving their health behavior in the same
way that discounts are given to safe drivers. The secretary also said he
is
considering making even the outdoor areas of all HHS property in America
smoke-free, “and we will provide the medicines and counseling to
help you stop smoking.”
Thompson urged public health advocates “to convince city planners
to provide safe streets for children to bicycle on and safe streets for
people to walk on” and won applause when he declared, “Every
road being built — you should be able to walk on it or ride a bike
on it.”
He added, “Go to Congress and the city council and
state legislatures and start getting them to buy into” the idea
of improving the “built
environment.”
Thompson noted that a huge transportation bill before Congress has “hardly
anything in there regarding bicycle paths or walking paths” and said
local government should transform abandoned railroad rights-of-way into
exercise paths. “It helps the economy, attracts tourists and makes
people healthy,” he said.
The former governor of Wisconsin, promoting his state’s industries,
joked that “not a single meal can’t be improved with cheese
and milk and butter. But you can do it in moderation.”
