Political Quotes

“Next week is National Public Health week--a week to raise awareness about the importance of public health all around this Nation. I applaud the efforts of the American Public Health Association in organizing events across the country to assist in this awareness building. We all know the alarming statistics demonstrating the worsening health status in both children and adults in this Nation. Without intervention, 1 in 3 children born in 2000 can expect to develop diabetes in their lifetime because of obesity resulting from poor nutrition and sedentary lifestyles. In my home State of Illinois, we have the highest number of lead-poisoned children in the Nation because of the large amount of older housing in places like Chicago. And asthma rates are on the rise in minority populations, reflecting worsening air quality in many areas. But what many don't know is how, and the degree to which, changes in the environment are contributing to this health decline. Yet, study after study has shown that environmental factors can be just as problematic as poor genes in causing disease.”