Give a student a cookie...

Strolling through the Willkie Center Store, I grabbed a cookie and a pint of whole milk. Why shouldn't I grab the Vitamin D milk? I exercised two weeks ago. Then I spotted the USA Today headline, "Obesity in America is worse than ever," and a statistic stating that 64.5 percent of American adults are overweight or obese.\nI'm not going to lie to you. I still ate the cookie and gulped down the whole milk, all the while thinking "See if I care about your statistics, USA Today!" But eventually curiosity got the best of me and I read the article based on the 1999-2000 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. I'm sure I've heard this before, but the fact that obesity leads to heart disease, diabetes and liver disease hasn't weighed on my mind. (Pun intended) \nScientists predict that things will get worse. If impending doom doesn't get to you, get healthy for the economy's sake. USA Today quoted Samuel Klein of the North American Association for the Study of Obesity as saying, "The medical costs of treating obesity-related disease will cause a considerable strain on the health care system and the economy." \nThe survey links economic status and obesity. The poor are more likely to become obese. For many in poverty, the closest grocery stores are stocked with unhealthy foods. Additionally, many poor people cannot afford gym memberships. Those in unsafe neighborhoods do not have a good environment in which to exercise outside.\nIU students don't face this problem. We pay a mandatory fee to Recreational Sports of $37.46 each semester. Compare this to say a $99 enrollment fee and monthly fee of about $30 at Bally Total Fitness and you have a great deal.\nIf you do partake in the myriad of activities at the Student Recreational Sports Center or the School of Health Physical Education and Recreation, try enhancing your workout by walking to the gym from your home or the bus stop. You can use this inexpensive form of exercise to go to class. After all, we also pay a $27.66 fee for transportation each semester. I know that walking and public transportation comes as a shock to those of you under the impression that IU is a commuter campus, but perhaps you should have paid closer attention to admissions brochures. \nFood is another factor in maintaining a healthy weight. Convincing me, who is afraid of vegetables, to eat healthy, is difficult. Maybe if you and I increase our awareness of health issues, in time we can learn to eat nutritious foods. Again, the opportunity is given to us as IU students. If you live on campus you pay anywhere from $1,000 to $2,950 a year for a meal plan. The residence halls offer options from fast food to salad bars, so the choice is yours. If you live off campus, you are saving money you would have spent on a meal plan so you can afford to eat healthy. \nGood health takes time, effort and most importantly, knowledge. Visit the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute's "Aim for a Healthy Weight" site, www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/heart/obesity/lose_wt/index.htm, to learn more. So it takes five minutes to type the URL, but it's a good place to begin assessing your health. This shouldn't be about slimming down to a size zero to impress friends. It's about maintaining our health or becoming healthy so we can live life to the fullest. Now, back to my milk and cookies … then I swear I'll workout tomorrow.