Obesity - A Problem Or A Disease?

Earlier this summer, the American Medical Association (AMA) classified obesity as a disease.  I have my doubts about this new approach to obesity.  It is, without any doubt, a problem in America and a growing issue in other countries as well.  Who does this new classification help?  The intention is to help the patient by focusing more attention on obesity and it has the added benefit of allowing more people to qualify for obesity treatment.  This new classification comes with a few problems.  

The External Factors

Let’s start off with the dictionary definition of disease: 

A disorder of structure or function in a human, animal, or plant, esp. one that produces specific signs or symptoms or that affects a specific location and is not simply a direct result of physical injury.

Now that obesity has been classified as a disease, it is all too possible that people will think their bodies are acting strangely.  This notion is false.  The fact is our bodies aren’t acting funny when it comes to obesity.  It’s acting exactly as evolution designed it:  we store excess calories as fat, which we save in case of famine.  A famine in America would be an entirely unprecedented event, and we should not bank on that happening anytime in the near future.  

If we eat a large amount of food and do not expend enough calories during physical activity, we get fat.  It’s not a disorder; the body is functioning perfectly.  Frankly, I would be more concerned if somebody ate a lot of unhealthy food, refused to work out and somehow managed to wither away.  The solution is to address external factors rather than saying the problem is our bodies.  Large portions, unhealthy food options, lack of exercise and, in many cases, lack of access to affordable healthy options are the main causes of obesity.  Classifying obesity as a disease does not address these issues.

The Blame Game

A large concern with this new diagnosis is that it shifts responsibility from the person to the “disease”.  In nearly all cases, obesity is preventable.  Referring to obesity as a disease focuses entirely on the genetic aspect and may make a person feel less responsible for his or her ability to control whether or not they reach the point where they are considered obese.  Instead, they may use this diagnosis as a crutch and feel that there is little to be done.  How many times have you heard a person blame the thyroid for their weight gain and feel that they have no way of mitigating the issue? 

Furthermore, being diagnosed with a disease is often traumatizing, which can also lead to listlessness and a lack of interest in regaining control.  Dr. Peter Morelli is a pediatric cardiologist and co-director of Fit for Life*, a program dedicated to helping overweight and obese children.  He brought up the valid point that referring to obesity as a disease may very well be more stigmatizing than uplifting.  He stated that he prefers to not label his participants as having a disease due to the negative effects.  Adults are not children, but many could react in a similar way and lose interest.

Medication does not solve the cause

There are new medications available for weight loss and insurance companies may very well cover other treatments such as bariatric surgery or nutrition counseling.  Nutrition counseling should be useful step in treating obesity, but again, the largest causes are ignored with this approach.  I cannot help but imagine a vicious cycle where people do not change their nutrition and physical activity, become diagnosed with obesity, take prescription medicines without changing their habits and wait for change…or bariatric surgery.  We should not learn to rely on pharmaceutical companies to fix a problem that we have control over.  “It’s like putting a band-aid on a hemorrhaging artery without acknowledging the cause,” stated Dr. Morelli.  

Some families have more access to fast food chains than supermarkets carrying nutritious and affordable produce.  Medication does not fix this.  Our food portions are larger and more processed; medication does not fix this either.  Saying that obesity is a disease may have the added benefit of insurance companies covering more treatments, but the best treatment is prevention.  Prevention should come from addressing societal issues surrounding the surge in obesity.  The AMA’s intentions may be good, but we will see how effective this new classification is in the long run.  

*Dr. Peter Morelli’s practice is located 57 Southern Blvd., Nesconset - ColumbiaDoctors - Pediatric Cardiology 

Kia Edwards is a certified personal trainer and nutrition specialist who lives in New York City. She studied French and Economics at Colgate University, spent 15 years as a high-level competitive gymnast and 6 years as a gymnastics coach.  Her business, La Fortesse At Home Fitness Training, helps clients get healthy with simple at home exercises and nutrition counseling. www.LaFortesse.com   

Smithtown Presents Its Budget As The Federal Government Shuts Down

By Maureen Rossi

Social Media was on fire, Tweets, Blogs and Facebooks posts echoed the exhausted and angry sentiment of most Americans on the morning of October first; in every corner of the nation people woke to the news that their federal government was closed for business.  A different story was playing out in Smithtown, Supervisor Patrick Vecchio was in his office at Town Hall bright and early readying to meet with the local media to take questions about the proposed Tentative Budget for 2014.    “I am pleased to submit the 2014 budget which reflects an overall decrease of $13.12 in town taxes on a house assessed at $5,500.00,” he commented.   It is a laborious process, the preparation of the town budget is a year-long effort.    “I meet with the Controller two to three times a week four to five weeks before the budget is presented but he makes recommendations all year long, it’s an ongoing process,” he added.

As the Chief Financial Trustee of the Town of Smithtown Vecchio takes the budget process very seriously and has had a great deal of experience in creating one.   “I think this is a remarkable achievement to be able to provide a slight decrease for taxpayers,” said Vecchio. 

Some critics have complained that the town’s reserves have dwindled too much in the last several years however Vecchio reminded every reporter at his Budget Presentation that we have gone through a historic recession.    This year’s proposed Reserve Fund if passed by the Town Board will hold $9,841,763.00, that number is up from last’s years Reserve of  $8,492,560.00 – it represents a 15.89% increase. 

Is this an election year shell game, a slight of hand, a manipulation of fiduciary resources for political gain or is it quite simple good money management?   The answer differs depending on you speak to.   The Creighton Camp is worried that the Reserve fund is becoming too low. “Mr. Vecchio’s budget is in and once again he is giving the appearance of keeping our taxes down while he is taking from our surplus, it’s like taking from your retirement fund week after week to pay your bills, in fact it’s terrible money management, said Creighton. 

Smithtown Democratic candidate for Supervisor, Steve Snair is equally critical of the proposed 2014 budget.  “This budget is an election year stunt by Supervisor Vecchio. He can’t hide behind the fact that he has repeatedly voted to raise property taxes on Smithtown residents,” he said.  He also added that there is no pay cut for the supervisor’s office for the 2014 budget. Snair has recently announced his intention to slash the supervisor’s salary by 10% when he is elected.  “Dipping into the surplus and failing to hire to fill vacancies is not a plan for success. Supervisor Vecchio’s budget does less with more; you can expect my administration to do more with less,” explained Snair.

Some might agree that a machinery increase for the highway department of $12.94 is impressive or that a $5.59 increase for a road fund in which the town will repave 22 – 24 miles is a bargain.   Ironically, a year after one of the Island’s largest snow falls (February’s 30” monster) – the snow removal cost is going down by $21.44.   

This year’s proposed Smithtown Budget falls under the 2% Tax Cap mandated by New York State law for municipalities, most school districts, and many library, fire and water districts.   Adopted in 2011, the growth in property tax levy is capped at 2 percent or the rate of inflation, whichever is less (with some exceptions).  In 2013, out of the 930 towns in the state, 251 wrote budgets overriding the tax cap.   Smithtown was not one of them and has been under the 2% rate since the law went into effect. 

When asked about the decreases throughout the budget, Supervisor Vecchio said much of the excess money came from attrition – people with higher-paying jobs retired and the town was able to replace that personnel with new employees on a much lower pay scale.  “There were no merit raises for employees in this budget, only contractual ones,” he explained. 

A million dollars was saved in the area of waste, the annual fee for taxpayers remains $305 per household for disposal from a single residence.   A half million was saved by negotiating with a new carter for collection and a half million was saved for use of the Covanta incinerator.  “I have allocated those savings for the Montclair Avenue Yard,” he explained.  Instead of Smithtown residents on the east end of town schlepping to Kings Park, they will have their own facility to rid of debris.  The town will comply with Department of Environment Conservation standards and renovate the yard to include weight scales for accurate account of vegetative debris and other waste that cannot be incinerated.  In addition a trailer will be put on site to house the new scale and operators.    

There is no good news about the federal shut-down, hopefully, by the time this article is published, the government will have resumed business.  The longest shutdown in the history of our country was 21 days, most have  lasted two or three days.    Until then, the mail will be delivered, you won’t be able to get a permit for a gun license and national parks are closed.  Feel free to visit any of the beautiful parks in Smithtown because they are open.   Feel free to go to the Paul J. Fitzpatrick Country club on Landing Avenue and play some golf, but it’s not free, last year taxpayers funded the bucolic municipal facility with $599,949.00, but the tentative 2014 budget includes a  decrease of 9% for running the operation.     

County Executive Steve Bellone "Democrats Can Win In Smithtown, I Won In Smithtown"

By Maureen Rossi

Steve Snair and County Executive Steve BelloneEarlier this year Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone endorsed  fellow Democrat Steve Snair (for Town Supervisor) and Monday night he headed to the V.F.W. in Kings Park to show his support for Snair and other Democratic nominees on November’s ballot.  “Democrats can win in Smithtown, I won in Smithtown by a narrow margin because the Democratic votes outnumbered the Republican votes,” he said.   Bellone said nobody believed it was possible to win in the Republican strong hold of Smithtown but he said it was the right year, the right town and maybe the stars aligned.   “We are on the verge of something like that happening in Smithtown,” he declared.  Bellone was also considered a great underdog in the once Republican Town of Babylon but ended up serving as the town’s Supervisor in 2001 after a stint on the Town Board.  Democratic Chairman Ed Maher concurred with Bellone and said,” Steve (Snair) is running a hard race and he can definitely win this race.”   

Gary Jacobs is running in the 12th Legislative District for the position currently held by Leg. John Kennedy.  He said he has really enjoyed being out on the campaign trail getting to know the people of the 12^th district and people all around Smithtown.   “I love that we are working as a team it’s one of the strong parts of the Democratic party,” he said.   He admits that he has been driving his opponent crazy with calls and questions.   “I’ll be holding two debates with him and two interviews, it’s going to be an issue campaign,” he explained.

Tom McCarthy, candidate for Superintendent of Highway, is running against Glenn Jorgenson. He had this to say to the democratic audience, “For fifteen years I have watched our town wither on the vine and I share Snair’s vision to revitalize our downtown.”    He said he looks forward to the renaissance of Smithtown.    

Candidates Adam Halpern and Richard Macellaro are both running for a seat on the Town Council.   “It’s our responsibility to elect Democrats, we have the best opportunity this year, we need to be Super Democrats and come and vote for the ticket,” explained Macellaro.     He added that he had no confidence in the present government and looks forward to creating the next generation of leadership for Smithtown.   “Different times require different voices, I am hopeful we can get the Democrats out, people want change,” he ended.

Judge Richard Horowitz was appointed by the Chief Administrative Judge of the State of New York as the Supervising Judge of the District Court of Suffolk County.  “I am responsible for the day-to-day operation of a court system that handles civil and criminal cases, in six courthouses, which are adjudicated by twenty-four judges, who collectively serve a community of approximately one million citizens,” said Horowitz.  Aside from his administrative responsibilities, he is also the Presiding Judge in the Drug Treatment Court, the Mental Health Court and our newly developed Human Trafficking Court.  Horowitz is well known by the best and brightest minds in the addiction community.  In lieu of jail time, he has mandated drug and alcohol treatment to many that have come before him.    Kim Revere is the President of the local substance abuse prevention non-profit Kings Park in the kNOw Community Alliance.  “Sick kids and people need treatment not jail, Judge Horowitz has set a lot of lives on the right path by mandating treatment,” she said.    Horowitz says the region’s opiate and heroin epidemic are far from over.   “People don’t’ realize it’s really very serious,” he said.

Town Supervisor Candidate Steve Snair - 10% Pay Cut For Supervisor

Snair Pledges to Slash Salary as Supervisor

Monday, September 30, 2013

SMITHTOWN, NY – Steve Snair, the Democratic, Independence, and Working Families candidate for Smithtown town supervisor, pledged his commitment to be a full-time supervisor, and that he intends to cut his annual salary by 10% once in office.

“There are many challenges facing this government. In these tough economic times we need to be proactive when it comes to saving money for taxpayers. It is incumbent upon our elected officials to remove waste, fraud and redundancy so that we continue to make our government efficient as possible. That’s why today, as a sign of my commitment towards increasing efficiency, I pledge to cut my annual salary as supervisor by 10%,” said Snair.  

The current annual salary for the supervisor is $111,635. Since taking office in 1978, Supervisor Vecchio has consistently received numerous salary increases. In 1998, Supervisor Vecchio’s annual salary was $73,336; since then, his annual salary has increased over 50%. A 10% pay cut to the supervisor’s salary would get it below the salaries of both, the town supervisors of Islip and Southampton.

“We need reassurances from our politicians that they are committed to doing more with less. I hope this pledge serves as a reminder to the voters that I am serious about saving money and looking out for their best interests,” added Snair.

 Snair challenged his opponents, Supervisor Vecchio and Councilman Creighton, to make the same pledge to reduce the supervisor’s salary, “I’ve put my money where my mouth is. I encourage my opponents to do the same.”

Dredging In The Nissequogue Set To Begin This Week

Dredging in the Nissequogue River is scheduled to begin this week. Earlier in September, Town Board members in a 4-0 vote (Councilman McCarthy was absent)  granted the necessary approvals to Suffolk County’s Department of Public Works allowing them to commence with the necessary dredging. 

The dredging will begin in the Nissequogue on October 1 and finish in Stony Brook Harbor and Porpoise Channel at the end of March 2014. 

According to Department of Environment and Waterways Director Russ Barnett,Russ Barnettdredging will take place in the existing navigation channel located in the Nissequogue River and the adjacent area of the Long Island Sound. The channel will be dredged to a depth of six feet. “We’re very pleased that we have been able to successfully work with Suffolk County to get both channel systems dredged this winter. It’s a tremendous investment in favor of Smithtown residents” said Barnett. 

On July 30, 2013 the Suffolk County Legislature approved funding for the Nissequogue dredging project set to cost approximately $2.1 million. The contract was awarded by the County to Gibson & Cushman. The last dredging project in the channel began in 2008 with activities completed in January of 2009. Gibson & Cushman took over the 2008/09 dredging project after Possillico, who won the bid, ran into some difficulties and was unable to complete the project.

According to Smithtown’s Environmental Director Russ Barnett, Gibson & Cushman are experienced in dredging in Smithtown, having worked  on the 2008/09 dredging project. People were pleased with the way they handled the removal of approximately 90,000 cubic yards of material and moved it to Sunken Meadow.

The channel has experienced a build up of sand due to the two major storms that hit our area over the past two years.  Approximately 93,000 cubic yards of material will be removed from the channel and deposited on Short Beach to be used for beach nourishment. The main differences between this project and the previous dredging done in the area is the amount of yardage being removed and the relocation of the material to Short Beach.