ad info




CNN.com
 MAIN PAGE
 WORLD
 U.S.
 LOCAL
 POLITICS
 WEATHER
 BUSINESS
 SPORTS
 TECHNOLOGY
 SPACE
 HEALTH
 ENTERTAINMENT
 BOOKS
 TRAVEL
 FOOD
 ARTS & STYLE
 NATURE
 IN-DEPTH
 ANALYSIS
 myCNN

 Headline News brief
 news quiz
 daily almanac

  MULTIMEDIA:
 video
 video archive
 audio
 multimedia showcase
 more services

  E-MAIL:
Subscribe to one of our news e-mail lists.
Enter your address:
Or:
Get a free e-mail account

 DISCUSSION:
 message boards
 chat
 feedback

  CNN WEB SITES:
CNN Websites
 AsiaNow
 En Español
 Em Português
 Svenska
 Norge
 Danmark
 Italian

 FASTER ACCESS:
 europe
 japan

 TIME INC. SITES:
 CNN NETWORKS:
Networks image
 more networks
 transcripts

 SITE INFO:
 help
 contents
 search
 ad info
 jobs

 WEB SERVICES:

  Transcripts

CNN Today

Researchers Find Early Signs of Heart Disease in Overweight Children

Aired March 14, 2000 - 1:01 p.m. ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

LOU WATERS, CNN ANCHOR: "It's only baby fat." That's a phrase we've all heard, or maybe even used dozens of times. It's been handed down from generation to generation. It's based on the assumption that children can eat what they want, even put on considerable weight, without long-term health consequences.

Now, there is new evidence that kind of thinking is not only wrong, but dangerous.

CNN medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): All those burgers, fries and pizzas are filling up teenagers' stomachs and, perhaps, their arteries, as well.

In a study of 224 high school students in California, doctors found that one-third were overweight, had high blood pressure or high cholesterol. And when they did ultrasounds on their arteries, these teenagers had thicker artery walls than their healthy classmates. Although not dangerous in itself, thickening of the arteries is the first step towards clogging of the arteries.

DR. WILLIAM DIELX, CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION: Obesity in children and teenagers is a problem that we need to worry a lot more about, because, as these individuals grow up to become adults, they're going to develop the diseases that they only now have risk factors for.

COHEN: The study is being presented at the annual meeting of the American College of Cardiology.

(on camera): This isn't the first time researchers have found that teenagers, and even children, are showing early signs of heart disease. In fact, it's become so rampant, they are not quite sure what to do about it.

(voice-over): One problem: teen attitudes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you are young, you are supposed to be, like, invincible; you are supposed to be able to eat whatever you want. COHEN: Another problem: money. The U.S. government does sponsor a program, telling people to eat five servings of fruits and vegetables a day, but...

DIELX: Five-a-day, which is a very popular nutrition program, runs on a budget of less than $1 million a year. And compare that with the hundreds of millions of dollars that advertisers spend to promote fast food or soft drinks, and you understand why there is a problem. We have not been able to get the message out.

COHEN: And experts say they have to get the message out now, or else face higher rates of heart disease later.

Elizabeth Cohen, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com

  ArrowCLICK HERE FOR TODAY'S TOPICS AND GUESTS
ArrowCLICK HERE FOR CNN PROGRAM SCHEDULES
SEARCH CNN.com
Enter keyword(s)   go    help

Back to the top   © 2001 Cable News Network. All Rights Reserved.
Terms under which this service is provided to you.
Read our privacy guidelines.