Battle of the Bulge

According to the American Heart Association, about one in three American kids and teens id overweight or obese today, nearly triple the rate in 1963. A new report by the Trust for America's Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation advises that if adult obesity rates continue on their current trajectories by 2030 13 states could have rates above 60 percent, 39 states above 50 percent and all 50 states above 44 percent.

A study published in tho International journal of obesity, based research at 10 universities points to the use of hormones in factory meat production as a major reason for this trend. Pesticides are another culprit; the average American is exposed to 10 to 13 different types each day via food beverages and drinking water, and nine out of 10 most commonly used are endocrine disputers linked to weight gain. Genetically modified U.S food crops also sprayed heavily with biocides. Findings presented at the 2007 annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science linked bisphenol A (BPA) - an industrial chemical contained in plastic soda, drinking and baby bottles - with abnormal estrogen function.

To win the battle of the bulge, Americans need to eat balanced diets and exercise regularly, but additional steps can further help : choose organic, grass fed meat instead of corn fed use glass instead of plastic containers for beverages and food storage, avoid canned food unless the label states BPA - free, and consume yogurt daily or take a high quality probiotic to help restore healthy intestinal flora.