Surgeon General speaks out about childhood obesity and depression

By Staff Writer

According to research conducted by PBS, major depression affects approximately 15 million American adults - or about 8 percent of the U.S. population age 18 and older - in a given year. New research is suggesting that children who are obese may be at a greater risk for developing this condition.

In response, Richard Carmona, 17th Surgeon General of the U.S., released a statement saying that solutions must be found for the childhood obesity epidemic as well as the mental health problems that face the U.S. He recently spoke at America's Children at Peril: Solving the Child Obesity and Mental Health Epidemics, a forum which was attended by more than 200 health leaders.

In his opening speech, Carmona said that obesity is a cause or a factor in a growing number of chronic illnesses, which affect more than 9 million children. He added that these two problems are the major cause of uniformed services personnel not being retained on active duty. He often referred to obesity as "the terror within."

According to PBS, approximately 4 percent of adolescents develop serious depression each year.