,i  #aacth ,,congress  #b;d ,session    
,h4 ,r4 #dhbj  ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of  
,,representatives  ,june #i1 #bjad ,ms4 
,norton introduced the following bill2  
which was referred to the ,committee on 
,energy and ,commerce  ,a ,,bill  ,to   
amend the ,public ,health ,service ,act 
to provide for a national program to    
conduct and support activities toward   
the goal of significantly reducing the  
number of cases of overweight and       
obesity among individuals in the ,united
 ,states4  #a4 ,short title ,this ,act  
may be cited as the ,promoting          
,healthier ,lifelong ,improvements in   
,food and ,exercise ,act or the ,,life  
,act4  #b4 ,findings ,the ,congress     
finds as follows3  7#a7 ,currently1     
#fd4e percent of adults in the ,united  
,states1 age #bj years and older1 are   
overweight and #gb million 7more than   
one-third of the adult population in the
 ,united ,states7 are obese4  7#b7 ,data
 from two ,national ,health and         
,nutrition ,examination ,surveys show   

that among adults who are #bj to #gd    
years of age the prevalence of obesity  
increased from #ae4j percent in the     
#aigf-aihj survey to #cd4i percent in   
the #bjaa-bjab survey4  7#c7 ,in #bjaa  
and #bjab1 of children and adolescents  
#b to #ai years of age more than        
#ab1ejj1jjj 7or #ag percent7 were       
overweight1 and of adults more than     
#ff1jjj1jjj 7or #cd4i percent7 were     
obese4 ,almost #f percent of adults were
 extremely obese4  7#d7 ,the percentage 
of children who are obese has more than 
doubled1 and among adolescents the      
percentage has more than tripled1 since 
#aihj the obesity rate for adolescents  
increased from #e percent to #ba        
percent4  7#e7 ,more than #a_/c of      
adults in the ,united ,states do not get
 enough physical activity and national  
data have shown an increase in the      
calorie consumption of adults4  7#f7    
,the rising rates of obesity portend    
greater disease and health conditions   
including hypertension1 high total      

cholesterol1 ,type #b diabetes1 coronary
 heart disease1 stroke1 gallbladder     
disease1 osteoporosis1 sleep apnea1 and 
respiratory problems1 and some cancers1 
such as endometrial1 breast1 and colon  
cancer4  7#g7 ,many underlying factors  
have been linked to the increase in     
obesity1 such as increasing portion     
sizes1 eating out more often1 increased 
consumption of sugar-sweetened drinks1  
increasing television1 computer1 and    
electronic gaming time1 changing labor  
markets1 and fear of crime1 which       
prevents outdoor exercise4  7#h7        
,chronic diseases account for #a4g      
million1 or #gj percent1 of all deaths  
in the ,united ,states each year4       
,although chronic diseases are among the
 most common and costly health problems1
 they are also among the most           
preventable4 ,adopting a healthy        
lifestyle such as eating nutritious     
foods and engaging in physical activity1
 can prevent or control the devastating 
effects of these diseases4 ,although    

chronic diseases are among the most     
common and costly health problems1 they 
are also among the most preventable4    
7#i7 ,in #bjjh1 overall medical costs   
related to obesity for ,united ,states  
adults were estimated to be as high as  
#adg billion4 ,people who were obese had
 medical costs that were on average     
#a1dbi higher than the cost for people  
of normal body weight4  #c4 ,reduction  
in prevalence of obesity2 program for   
lifelong improvements in food and       
exercise ,part ,b of title ,,iii of the 
,public ,health ,service ,act 7#db      
,u4,s4,c4 #bdc et seq47 is amended by   
inserting after section #cag,t the      
following section3  #cag,u4 ,reduction  
in prevalence of obesity  7a7 ,in       
general ,the ,secretary1 acting through 
the ,director of the ,centers for       
,disease ,control and ,prevention1 shall
 carry out a national program to conduct
 and support activities regarding       
individuals who are overweight or obese 
in order to make progress toward the    

goal of significantly reducing the      
number of cases of obesity among        
individuals in the ,united ,states4  7b7
 ,certain activities ,in carrying out   
subsection 7a71 the ,secretary shall    
7directly or through grants or          
contracts7 carry out the following with 
respect to individuals who are          
overweight3  7#a7 ,activities to train  
health professionals to recognize that  
patients are overweight and to recommend
 prevention activities regarding such   
condition1 including educating patients 
on the relationship between such        
condition and cardiovascular disease1   
diabetes1 and other health conditions1  
and on proper nutrition and regular     
physical activities4  7#b7 ,activities  
to educate the public with respect to   
the condition of being overweight1      
including the development of a strategy 
for a public awareness campaign4  7#c7  
,the development and demonstration of   
intervention strategies for use at      
worksites and in community settings such

 as hospitals and community health      
centers4  7c7 ,authorization of         
appropriations ,for the purpose of      
carrying out this section1 there are    
authorized to be appropriated           
#be1jjj1jjj for fiscal year #bjae1 and  
such sums as may be necessary for each  
of the fiscal years #bjaf through #bjah4
  4