I'm not seeing the connection between Oprah and U.S. Surgeon General, Dr. Regina Benjamin. Did the doctor appear on her show?

Oprah is not a doctor nor did she ever even go to college. As far as I know she has never written any book on health and diet either. I do admire Oprah and her accomplishments and from what I have read Dr. Benjamin is a great choice for the position - even though she is overweight.

Benjamin's weight issues do make me think that she does not embrace a philosophy of healthy living and her advice may be misguided when it comes to creating a new "four basic foods group" or "food pyramid" for Americans to follow.

Oprah did attend college, but I'm not sure if she graduated.

Thanks. I just checked Wiki and she did start college. Never completed.

I think I remember reading that she did get some sort of 'lifetime achievement' degree from some college or school somewhere, which in my opinion is greater than just a piece of paper to hang on the wall showing four year attendance and passing grades. I don't know if she ever showed up in person to collect the honor. A lot of times schools just do that sort of thing to advertise and market their school getting their name in the paper. The recipient is not interested in it. I'm going to read up on her bio a bit further to refresh my memory.

I really don't think Oprah's weight issues have anything to do with her lack of an official degree from a college or expertise in nutrition.

Seriously, I think most weight issues are caused by other emotional situations that cause over eating, or by basically not enough exercise for what you're eating.

Of course, there's the cases where weight gain/obesity is caused by some medical condition, but let's face the facts - most people are fat because they eat too much and don't burn off the calories they eat.

Oprah has the best chefs, personal trainers, Dr. Oz, et al...It has to come from within and it has to be a permanent life style change. Losing weight for a period of time and then reverting back to negative behaviors will just bring it back - as we've seen.

I know that's my problem...I was so skinny growing up I never learned how to control my eating. So when my activity level slowed down, and my "interest" in eating increased - viola I've become the sausage woman.

Yes, I know I eat too much, and Yes, I know I should exercise more. Why I don't stop/start doing these things is the secret I haven't figured out!! I think I need to be sent away to fat camp for 6 months - I have no ability to self regulate myself.

Why do you think Dr. Benjamin's advice may be "misguided" when it comes to establishing nutritional guidelines that reflect current research? Being fat does not make one a moron unable to understand the issues and interpret research. Most of the people I know who are overweight are not overweight because they are lazy fatasses who sit on their butt and do nothing all day, nor are they fat because they are stupid enough to believe that what they eat that is fast and convenient is actually good for them - they are overweight because they are overachievers in other areas and put themselves and their health last. Myself included. I gained a large amount of my weight while in grad school when I was working 16 hours a day and forgot to eat and basically ate one meal a day. No time for exercise, no time to eat, just enough time to keep my head above water. Then I went into a job where I had a 2 hour commute each way and was working 12 hour days and where they would buy me lunch and dinner so I could keep working. More weight gain. Anyone who knows my work ethic would say I'm highly driven and I am not blessed with the kind of metabolism that can compensate like some.

Embrace a philosophy of healthy living? There isn't a politician alive who does. What one eats and how much they exercise is only a small part of it. Stress levels, the amount of time americans work, the lack of sleep most americans have, the pressure to have it all and be a parent and still hold down a full time job is enormous. If we want to talk "healthy lifestyle" we have to focus on more than just weight in this country. IMO the obesity problem is a symptom of a FAR greater problem and is not the problem itself - and who better to understand the issues that so many americans face than someone who is dealing with the same issues? Lord forbid the surgeon general have some insight and personal experience with a major health issue and not be perfect herself.

"Embrace a philosophy of healthy living? There isn't a politician alive who does."

Dr. Benjamin is not a politician. She has the title of Vice Admiral.

I would not paint all politicians with one broad brush either. I'm sure that many of them keep themselves fit and use a sensible approach to living.

I am hoping that our new attorney general will not cave in to corporate greed and will usher in a new direction in our health care as a nation. Dr. Benjamin has been accused of being a practicing Roman Catholic, and some feel that if this is true, it will affect her judgment and thinking. Her track record has proven that this is not so.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vice_admiral_%28United_States%29

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Public_Health_Service_Commissioned_Corps

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uniformed_services_of_the_United_States

Vice Admiral Regina Benjamin , USPHS
18th Surgeon General of the United States

---------

"I really don't think Oprah's weight issues have anything to do with her lack of an official degree from a college or expertise in nutrition."

No, I don't think so either.

Too many celebrities are self appointed experts or spokespersons on topics where the only experience they have with it, is their personal experience and none other. I don't think Oprah would be qualified to write a book on nutrition. She could write a book as a celebrity relating her experiences with yo-yo dieting and drug abuse and I'm sure it would be a best seller. I'm not negating the importance of personal experience but there has to be a balance. It's the reason that many do not take former Playboy model Jenny McCarthy seriously when she trumpets the evils of vaccines and the link to autism. A college degree does not make one smart but it does get people to listen.

Anyway as many already know I am a fitness instructor and my views on nutrition, diet, fitness, and the use of non-pharmaceutical alternatives whenever possible, are going to be radically different than that of any 'overachievers'. I've also worked in the food service industry and know how horrid our food options are. They are very limited, and very expensive if you want to eat right. Most people are not willing to pay the price. They want cheap. This means genetically modified, hybrids grown to look colorful, or chemical mixes that are designed to mimic real food. Artificial cheese. HFCS in everything. Wheat filler in everything. Irradiated fruits and vegetables that then refuse to ripen. Artificial coloring in artificial foods to make them look like the real thing. On and on.

Here is a link that might be useful: Vice Admiral

Lifestyle is certainly a big part, but it is hard to fight your DNA/genetics. I've also done Grad school and long work days, but for me that leads to weight loss. Stress leads to loss of appetite and whatever I do consume, goes right through my body. My sister, on the other hand, is the complete opposite. Same parents (normal weight), but very different offspring.

Dilly, I've started reading up on HFCS and all the "frankenstein" food that is out there. It makes you wonder what it is doing to the younger generation who are getting most of their nutrition from these foods during their whole lives.

Whether you agree with his politics or not, George Bush appears to embrace a philosophy of healthy living.

Chispa, bless you for taking the time to educate yourself on the matter. There is so much out there about genetically modified foods it is too much to summarize in a couple of posts. Who here feels comfortable eating potatoes that have had the genes of pork modified into them?

I have felt for a long time that the Office of the Surgeon General has become a puppet of Congress. Agribusiness has powerful lobbyists. Do you think that if the Surgeon General would issue a proclamation advising Americans to not consume HFCS that there would not be a political backlash? Corn is our biggest money making crop. Look how long it took before the SG was able to require warning labels to be put on cigarettes? Tobacco is a big money maker for farmers. Look at how long the American Medical Association backed tobacco companies not only saying cigarettes were safe but going so far as to say taking up smoking will improve your health. Cash subsidies given to tobacco farmers why?

I roll my eyes when I see the "food pyramid" put out in 1992 encouraging people to make crackers and pasta the bulk of their diet and fearing Omega-3 oils.

The pyramid even show tomatoes under the 'vegetable' heading. Botanically tomatoes are a fruit. A lot they know huh? And butter is not a "dairy food" as the government has tried to lead us to believe - it is just grease. Nothing more.

Read here in the link below about how the lobbyist from the Dairy Council and meat industries influence the government recommended food pyramid. This is not about the Surgeon General "interpreting data and research" as a PP says, it is all about politics. We then all suffer.

I have high hopes for Dr. Benjamin. I've read a few bios on her since she assumed her new position.
Very impressive. Lets hope she can overcome these obstacles that have been allowed in before she accepted her commission.

http://ezinearticles.com/?Whatever-Happened-to-the-Basic-Four-Food-Groups?&id=6641

Here is a link that might be useful: Food Politics

Are you saying that the new surgeon general is overweight? If so, I would have a difficult time with her telling everyone to "be healthy" when she herself is not "practicing what she is preaching." It's rather like your doctor who smokes telling you to quit smoking.

I realize now that when I said "Lets hope she can overcome these obstacles that have been allowed in, before she accepted her commission." that the sentence sounds disjointed and clunky.

What I meant was not any personal obstacles she is dealing with, but rather how the Office of Surgeon General seems to no longer act independently and is forced(?) to acquiesce to the demands of other government agencies, putting the needs of businesses and corporations ahead of common sense when it comes to our health. I am afraid she will find some roadblocks preventing her from taking any real initiative in overseeing our nation's health. The *obstacle* she may face is being told by 'higher ups' to not 'rock the boat' when it comes to deciding what is good for our children and what is good for Monsanto.

I'll wait and see and hope for the best.

As I understand it, grease comes from the meat of an animal, whereas butter comes from the milk of the animal, making it a dairy product.

Dilly, please point me to information on potatoes that have had the genes of pork modified into them. I would like to read more about this.

Well, this is MY food pyramid, but it only has four groups: dark chocolate (antioxidants); ice cream (calcium); peanutbutter (protein); frozen margarita and/or cosmopolitan for the lime and/or cranberry (fruit).

Admittedly, I don't know much about the new Surgeon General (I didn't even know a woman was chosen), but judging from the picture above I see a woman that is probably healthier than the ultra skinny celebrities so many try to emulate. There are many people who are larger than is accepted in our society, but are still fit and healthy.

"Dilly, please point me to information on potatoes that have had the genes of pork modified into them. I would like to read more about this."

I am sorry I can't find it right now with a quick search. I'll keep trying OK? I do a lot of online reading and I did read about it. I remember how surprised I was to learn that plant and animal genes can be mixed. Here is an article that mentions inserting the genes from a fish into strawberry to make it frost tolerant. Eeeew:

http://www.disabled-world.com/fitness/gm-foods.php

Article decreeing the insertion of animal genes into plants that we eat:

http://reason.com/archives/2002/11/27/veggie-tales

A couple articles mentioning the mixing of plant and animal genes.

http://www.psrast.org/mianbree.htm

http://www.greens.org/s-r/18/18-02.html

Here is a link that might be useful: Strawberry Fish

I was a science major so these "food" articles tend to catch my eye. Do some searching on the company Monsanto. I wish they would label food that is genetically modified ... I wouldn't buy it if I knew.

Dilly, this is where you want to be careful to separate what is possible from what is being done. I googled the phrase:

the gene from a fish that lives in very cold seas has been inserted into a strawberry, allowing the fruit to be frost-tolerant.

I found more than a page of sites that quotes that phrase, all from the anti-groups, and stated as fact. Then, I clicked on a link that wasn't an anti-group, and I pulled up what I believe is the correct version of the strawberry fish story:

Genetic engineering involves the disarranging and recombining of gene fragments, often of unrelated species. By cutting a fragment of a genetic sequence and pasting it into cells of an unrelated species, scientists can insert a gene of one organism into an unrelated one. As a result, a plant may be fooled into accepting messages that turn its leaves a different colour, or promoters may be introduced into fish genes so they will respond in a desired manner when transferred into the cell of a strawberry eg producing a hormone for cold tolerance.

While it has become well established in agriculture, genetic engineering is largely at the experimental stage in aquaculture. Most commonly, aquaculturists improve stocks or species by using the sperm of one strain or variety to fertilize the eggs of another. For example, a salmon farmer who wants to produce fish with high oil content may cross-breed a colder water salmon stock with another stock that is adapted to the warmer environment where the offspring are intended to be grown. Genetic engineering offers a speedier road to the same destination.

And this from a PBS link:

Moving genes across species to produce so-called transgenic life forms seems to many a radical step. One experiment, proposed but never carried out, to splice a flounder gene into a strawberry to protect it from frost, has caught the public imagination. It's the stuff of fear and myth. What have we created, fish or strawberry?

I'm not trying to change anyone's minds about this, but I don't like the fear mongering. I want to let scientists experiment in all directions. It doesn't mean that we are going to have a world full of strawberry fish or pork potatoes.