Face-to-face with one of Liane's heroes. (ph. Howard Pasamanick)

LIANE HEARTS BILL CLINTON

- Liane Weintraub, Editor-in-Chief

I met Bill Clinton last night. I honestly did, and it was quite a thrill.
 
Now, let me explain: ever since Clinton left office, I have had more and more respect for how he chooses to devote his time and energy. At a time when our world is deep in crisis, Clinton always seems to hone in on the issues that are most crucial to the human existence: the AIDS pandemic, the global climate calamity and childhood obesity– a health disaster that’s reaching epic levels in America.
 
And so, out of respect for the things the former President is working on, I went to hear him speak at the Music Center of Los Angeles. Lucky me, I even got invited to the VIP reception prior to his speech, which is where I got to chat with him. Awe-stricken as I was to meet the great, white-haired ex-Prez, I managed a few words about my esteem for what he’s doing to help children, blah blah blah. I was so star-struck that I’m not even sure I was coherent. I’ll try to do a better job here:
 
Believe it or not, we’re living in an age when today’s generation of kids could live shorter lives than their parents did due to the staggering problem of childhood obesity, which leads to all kinds of health complications including diabetes. Type II diabetes (the kind you don’t inherit) used to be called “adult-onset diabetes,” but the population that’s being diagnosed with it more and more often is children. More than 11 million children and adolescents (16%) are overweight or obese, and 1 in 3 American children born in 2000 will develop type II diabetes.
 
The eating habits of America’s young people is not just unappealing– it’s deadly. American children are consuming shocking amounts of very unhealthy foods, including sugar, fat and chemicals, not to mention vast quantities of genetically modified (GMO) and hydrogenated substances that many nutrition experts do not consider fit for human consumption at all.
 
This is a true public health emergency, and former President Clinton created a non-profit foundation (www.clintonfoundation.org) that is waging an incredible battle against childhood obesity and diabetes by working with schools and other agencies to change kids’ eating habits. I was proud to be able to tell him that Tastybaby is a partner in his mission. By reaching children when they are still babies – before bad eating habits can be formed – and introducing them to pure, healthy, organic foods, we hope to be able to make a real difference in the health of an entire generation.
 
Sources:
Click here: William J. Clinton Foundation
 
Click here: The Alliance for a Healthier Generation

Click here: Face the Fats