[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 62 (Thursday, May 6, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E781]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON PROGRAM TO PREVENT OBESITY

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                        HON. SHEILA JACKSON-LEE

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 6, 2004

  Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, we have an epidemic of obesity 
in America, threatening to become the single most pressing public 
health issue before us within one year. I would like to commend the 
outstanding work being done at the University of Houston in my 
district, where they have recently created the Institute for Obesity 
Prevention and Urban Fitness.
  According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in 2000, 
31 percent of U.S. adults aged 20 years and older--nearly 59 million 
people--were obese. And the problem is getting steadily worse. In 2003 
obesity was responsible for 16.6 percent of preventable deaths in 
America, preceded only by tobacco which is responsible for about 
430,000 deaths a year. Recent research suggests that obesity will 
become the leading cause of death by 2005, claiming more than 500,000 
lives.
  In addition to the enormous human toll, the National Institute of 
Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Disease estimates that the economic 
burden of those being overweight or obese in the United States totals 
approximately $117 billion a year.
  Realizing the serious need to address this nationwide epidemic, the 
Department of Health and Human Performance in the University of 
Houston's College of Education has begun development of the Institute 
for Obesity Prevention and Urban Fitness. The center will conduct 
clinical research, educational programs, and outreach to serve the UH 
student body and the demographically diverse underserved community 
surrounding the UH campus. In partnership with the Biomedical 
Engineering Group at the University of Houston, the institute will 
search for biomarkers to predict obesity risk and treatment outcomes. 
This unique, new institute gives the University of Houston a leading 
role in national obesity research.
  I commend the University of Houston for creating a center whose 
studies will provide a model for the nation and whose research will 
benefit millions of Americans in the midst of a health crisis.

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