Health Experts Find Obesity Measures Too Lightweight

　　Researchershave slammed the US government’s plans to combat the country’s obesity epidemic. Experts say the focus on changes in personal choices is flawed，and ignores the role of government and the food industry in shaping people’s decisions.

　　研究人员对美国政府控制流行性肥胖问题的计划给予了抨击。专家们认为，该计划侧重于改变个人对食品的选择，这样做是不恰当的，忽视了政府和食品工业在影响人们的决定方面所起的作用。

　　The strategy，announced on 9 March by Tommy Thompson，head of the Department of Health and Human Services，combines a nationwide education and advertising campaign with a revamp of obesity research across the National Institute of Health （NIH）。

　　这一计划是美国卫生和公共服务部部长汤米·汤姆森 3 月 9 日宣布的，它把全国范围的教育和宣传活动与国家卫生研究院肥胖研究的调整结合了起来。

　　A public-awareness campaign，dubbed “small steps”，will try to educate Americans by highlighting healthier lifestyle options，such as walking up stairs instead of taking a lift. Thompson also wants voluntary measures to encourage restaurants to put calorie information on menus and to improve the accuracy of calorie counts on food labels.

　　一项称为“小步行动”的公共教育活动将努力通过强调选择健康的生活方式来教育美国人，比如走楼梯而不是乘电梯。汤姆森同时希望采取自觉的措施来鼓励餐馆在菜单上标明食物所含热量，提高食品标签上的热量信息的准确度。

　　Obesity experts say that education is fine，but they are angry that the government has not addressed what they believe to be the main cause of obesity—the easy availability of cheap，calorie-rich foods. For example，a study released last month by the Center for Science in the Public Interest，a Washington-based group that campaigns on nutrition issues，showed that the main courses of children’s meals in US chain restaurants typically contain 700-900 calories， more than half the total recommended daily amount.

　　肥胖问题专家们指出，教育是有意义的，但他们感到气愤的是，政府没有针对他们所认为的肥胖的主要原因 ——即廉价的高热量食品很容易获得——采取措施。比如，总部在华盛顿、专门宣传营养问题的大众兴趣科学中心上个月公布的一项研究成果表明，美国餐饮连锁店中儿童食品的主餐通常含有 700 － 900 卡路里的热量，超过了每日应摄入总热量的一半。

　　And according to a study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta，Georgia，around 64%of US citizens are overweight or obese，with obesity accounting for 400，000 preventable deaths in 2000，second only to tobacco.

　　位于乔治亚州亚特兰大市的美国疾病预防控制中心的一项研究表明：64 ％的美国公民体重超标或过于肥胖； 2000 年肥胖导致了 400 ，000 人死亡，仅次于吸烟造成的死亡人数，而这些死亡本来是可以避免的。

　　Regulating the food industry is the best way to tackle the problem，say public-health experts and nutrition scientists. They recommend banning soft drinks and fast foods in schools and food advertising directed at children. They also want compulsory labeling of the calorie content of restaurant menus.

　　大众健康专家和营养科学家们指出，规范食品工业是解决这个问题的最佳途径。他们建议禁止在学校内出售软饮料和快餐食品，禁止向儿童做食品宣传。他们还希望强制餐馆在菜单上标明食品的热量。

　　“The campaign says nothing about what the government or the food industry could do to help people to eat less and move more，” says Marion Nestle，chair of the Department of Nutrition，Food Studies and Public Health at New York University.

　　纽约大学营养、食品与公共卫生系主任马里恩·耐斯特说：“这项活动根本没有提及政府和食品工业在帮助人们少吃多动方面能做什么。”

　　The other component of Thompson’s plan—changes to NIH obesity research—has been welcomed by obesity experts. Under the scheme，put together by a cross-agency task force set up by NIH director Elias Zerhouni，the institutes will focus on behavioural and environmental approaches to modifying lifestyle. It will also support clinical trials of diet strategies.

　　汤姆森计划的另一部分——改革国家卫生研究院的肥胖问题研究——受到了肥胖问题专家们的欢迎。根据国家卫生研究院主任伊莱亚斯·泽鲁尼组织的跨部门特别工作组提出的这项计划，国家卫生研究院将集中研究通过行为和环境方法来改变生活方式。它也将支持节食减肥的临床试验。

　　Increased focus on research to prevent obesity is essential，says Kelly Brownell，director of Yale University’s Center for Eating and Weight Disorders. He points out that the NIH has been criticized for focusing too much on the genetics，pharmacology and treatment of obesity. Research in these areas will continue under the plan，which could be funded by a $ 40-milliion increase for obesity included in the 2005 NIH budget request.

　　耶鲁大学饮食与体重异常研究中心主任凯利·布朗尼尔说，加强对肥胖预防研究的关注是必要的。他指出，由于过分关注肥胖症的遗传、药理和治疗等方面，国家卫生研究院已经受到了批评。根据该计划，这些方面的研究将会继续下去，在 2005 年国家卫生研究院的预算申请中将为肥胖症研究增加40，000，000 美元的资金。

　　But many scientists worry that marking obesity as a research problem risks“medi-calizing” the issue and reinforcing public belief that it is a disease requiring treatment.

　　但是许多科学家担心，把肥胖作为研究问题的风险有将这一问题医学化的危险，使公众更相信肥胖症是一种必须治疗的疾病。