Chemicals, Obesity, and Diabetes
Obesity and diabetes have overtaken smoking as the #1 preventable health determinant in the U.S. Recent statistics estimate obesity prevalence among adults at 30% in the U.S. An estimated 17% of U.S. children and adolescents aged 2-19 years are obese.
Critical, ongoing public health efforts to reduce obesity and diabetes are addresing multiple social factors through education, policy and system changes to address contributing factors including inadequate nutrition and physical inactivity. Recent scientific research shows that chemical exposures may also be a risk factor.
EHSC is tracking the emerging science on chemical “obesogens” and working with public health partners to develop strategies to identify and reduce the contribution of chemical exposures to obesity, diabetes, and metabolic disorders.
On October 14, 2011, the Environmental Health Strategy Center (EHSC), in partnership with the Goldfarb Center at Colby College, brought together national and state scientific and public health scholars, practitioners, and advocates, as well as national and state policy-makers, faculty and students at the first Maine conference on “Chemicals, Obesity and Diabetes.”
The conference explored two questions about chemical “obesogens:”
* What is the current state of the science that links chemical exposures to obesity, diabetes and other diseases?
* What public health policy actions are appropriate based on the current evidence?
The event featured nationally-known and Maine-based scientific and medical researchers, and public health health experts. The full agenda is available here.
Podcast recordings of several presentations are available through links immediately below. Downloadable slide show presentations by several speakers follow.
“Overview of the Obesity Epidemic” - Dr. Michael Dedekian, Pediatric Endocrinology and Diabetes, Barbara Bush Children’s Hospital, Maine Medical Center, and Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, Tufts Medical School
Keynote Address: “Obesogens, Stem Cells and the Maternal Programming of Obesity” - Bruce Blumberg, PhD, Professor, Department of Developmental and Cell Biology, University of California-Irvine
All morning sessions as one audio file, including the Dedekian and Blumberg presentations listed above, along with:
- “Developmental and Environmental Origins of Obesity/Diabetes: A Bad Start Lasts a Lifetime” - Jerrold Heindel, PhD, Acting Branch Chief, Cellular, Organ & Systems Pathobiology, Division of Extramural Research and Training, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences
- “Prenatal Exposures and Obesity: Evidence from Epidemiologic Studies” - Elizabeth Hatch, PhD, Associate Professor of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, Boston University
“Chemical Exposure, Obesity and Diabetes in Minority Communities” - Lisa Sockabasin, Director, Maine CDC Office of Minority Health; and Mark Mitchell, MD, MPH, FACPM, President, Mitchell Environmental Health Associates, Founder and Senior Poilcy Advisor, Connecticut Coalition for Environmental Justice
“Policy Strategies to Address Chemicals Linked to Obesity and Diabetes” - Michael Belliveau, Executive Director, Environmental Health Strategy Center; Richard Denison, PhD, Senior Scientist, Environmental Defense Fund
Download slide show presentations from key speakers:
“Overview of the Obesity Epidemic” - Michael Dedekian, MD, Maine Medical Center