[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 178 (Thursday, November 2, 2017)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1498]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 RECOGNIZING NATIONAL OBESITY CARE WEEK

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                           HON. JOHN SHIMKUS

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, November 2, 2017

  Mr. SHIMKUS. Mr. Speaker, I rise in recognition of National Obesity 
Care Week on behalf of the over 90 million adult Americans living with 
obesity today.
  Treating obesity is more than just eating right and exercising and is 
caused by a number of factors that are often out of that person's 
control. These include genetics, socioeconomic status, and 
physiological, psychological and environmental factors.
  As important, obesity is also linked to over 50 disorders including 
Type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and cardiovascular disease. In fact, 
over $1.42 trillion is spent in the U.S. on direct and indirect costs 
for health related conditions related to obesity a year.
  National Obesity Care Week aims to advance an evidence-based 
understanding of obesity and widespread access to comprehensive and 
appropriate care. Unfortunately, at 31.6 percent, Illinois has the 18th 
highest adult obesity rate in the nation--4 million people--almost a 
third of our population. This must change. I urge my fellow Members, 
the scientific community, and researchers, to treat obesity seriously--
as the chronic disease that it is--and I urge the medical community to 
have conversations with their patients, their students, and their 
colleagues about obesity and how we can effectively treat this disease.

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