Houston, TeXXXL
Supersize City, U.S.A.
By ERIC YVAN LEMAY, SUN MEDIA
Four times named "fattest" city of the year by Men's Fitness magazine over the past five years (it ranked second in 2004), Houston is literally buckling under its own weight.
The prevalence of obesity in Houston -- defined as having a Body Mass Index of 30 or more -- is estimated by state officials at more than one in three.
In the metro Houston region, more than 65% of the population is overweight (BMI of 25 and up).
One out of two children is overweight and Type 2 Diabetes is striking kids as early as age eight.
By comparison, a Statistics Canada survey released two years ago shows 48% of Canadians are overweight and 14.9% of us are classified obese.
Canada's "Fat City" is Saskatoon, but compared to Houston, it's downright svelte.
StatsCan numbers show Saskatoon's rate of obesity at 18.2% with 50.3% considered overweight.
Toronto was ranked second fittest (behind Vancouver, of course) -- 11.4% are obese, 40.9% overweight.
But lest we look southward with smugness, studies also show obesity is on the rise in Canada.
A StatsCan report released last year found half a million Canadians became overweight or obese over the past five years, a quarter of those children.
Houston could be our future.
The Texas metropolis is custom-made to promote weight gain.
Fast-food outlets everywhere, almost no public transit, and month after month of suffocating heat.
"It is true that we have a lot of couch potatoes here, people who watch television and don't move enough. But we're trying to change that," says Herb Lipsman, manager of the Get Moving Houston program that promotes physical activity.
Its goal is to get Houston off the list of the fattest cities in America.
That's a colossal task considering the city boasts twice the number of restaurants per capita than any other large U.S. city.
In Houston, the car is king and drive-thru is the rule.
Some restaurants offer vast parking lots where you can eat in your vehicle.
No need to get out of your car either when you go to the bank or to the pharmacy.
Poverty also plays a role.
In the poorest areas, up to 80% of the population is overweight.
"It's a Spanish-speaking and black people problem. Were it a white and rich people problem, it would be taken more seriously," said Dr. Siripoom McKay, director of the Type 2 Diabetes program at the Texas Medical Center.
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The Gulley-Willis children of Houston's south side are often teased because of their weight.
Collectively Trina Gulley and her two children weigh more than 1,000 lb.
"It's a disease, and people don't understand," the 35-year-old mother says quietly. "It's genetic, my mother was overweight, too. What can we do, we're all fat in the family."
Most of this family's activities centres around TV and video games, in front of which they spend several hours daily.
KeAira, a 16-year-old who weighs 331 lb., also spends long hours on the phone.
"When it rings, it's always for her," her mother said.
Used to insults because of her weight, Trina Gulley raised her children not to be ashamed of their condition.
"I give her some advice. I raised and fed her the best I could. It doesn't matter what people think," Gulley said about her daughter.
In spite of that, KeAira wishes she looked better.
"Sometimes, I feel sad or mad because of my weight," she said.
She really likes dancing, but gets exhausted quickly.
The young woman is also unable to run or do sit-ups like any other teens her age.
That's why she had bariatric surgery in January, reducing her stomach's capacity for food.
Bariatric procedures in the U.S. have soared from 16,200 operations in 1992 to an estimated 140,000 in 2004.
It's projected doctors will be performing well over 200,000 such surgeries by 2010.
Less than one month after her operation, KeAira had lost 37 lb.
Her objective is to lose nothing less than 150 before next year.
"I decided to do the operation because I had diabetes, sleep apnea and knee problems," she said.
"She's more cheerful since then. Her attitude changed," said her mother, who's also thinking about the surgery.
"I'm often tired and low on energy."
Her son Jarvis is also considering bariatric surgery, even though he's just 14 years old.
He already weighs more than 300 lb. and belongs to a support group for obese teenagers.
Even if she loses the desired weight, KeAira said it's difficult for her to visualize being thin.
"At times, I can imagine it but, at other times, I'm happy as I am."
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UNITED WEIGHTS OF AMERICA
The curse of obesity in the U.S.:
* 300,000 die every year of complications associated with obesity.
* Average weight has risen from 166 lb. in 1962 to 191 lb. in 2001.
* Life expectancy for an obese person is 58 years, but 78 years for non-obese.
* Childhood obesity increased by 230% over the past 25 years.
* 62% of the population is overweight.
* 5.1% of the population suffers from morbid obesity.
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