So...if you haven't heard Lincoln University (an HBCU) has required that anyone at the University with a BMI of 30+ have to take a fitness class in order to graduate. So.........clearly I'm like WTF....GTFOHWTBS....
My problem is that its only for the people with BMIs over 30....really though. Let's not even get into the issues with BMIs (clearly there are those whose BMI is an accurate representation ...but its not for everyone....only that water joint is...idk what its called)...but I think if they are truly concerned it should be a requirement for everyone.
First reason....if you are concerned about obesity...just because someone isn't obese now, doesn't mean they are immune to it. They could be making all the same choices as the person who is but may have a faster metabolism or are CURRENTLY more active. So there is no help for that person who could fall into bad habits later.
Secondly, weight is not necessarily a sure sign of diabetes or high blood pressure. There are plenty of skinny people who are afflicted with both and have never been overweight EVER. So if diabetes, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol that run rampant in the African American community are really the issues then EVERYONE should take the class.
Lastly, for all the athletes who probably have higher BMIs due to muscle mass, are they going to be required to take the class also...or will they be exempt?? Hmm...who knows. I mean i do think everyone should be in the class to learn healthy habits but why should the athlete have to take it when the anorexic girl gets off free (sorry i had to say it) like her health and well being aren't at risk also. Just because that isn't hyped up in our community doesn't mean it doesn't exist.
ANYWAY...i just think this is whack....it should be for EVERYONE...because EVERYONE needs the information!!!
Article Below:
(Source)
Pa. University Students Upset About Fitness Class
PHILADELPHIA (AP) ―
A Pennsylvania university's requirement that overweight undergraduates take a fitness course to receive their degrees has raised the hackles of students and the eyebrows of health and legal experts.
Officials at historically black Lincoln University said Friday that the school is simply concerned about high rates of obesity and diabetes, especially in the African-American community.
"We know we're in the midst of an obesity epidemic," said James L. DeBoy, chairman of Lincoln's department of health, physical education and recreation. "We have an obligation to address this head on, knowing full well there's going to be some fallout."
The fallout began this week on Lincoln's campus about 45 miles southwest of Philadelphia, where seniors -- the first class affected by the mandate -- began realizing their last chance to take the class would be this spring.
Tiana Lawson, a 21-year-old senior, wrote in this week's edition of The Lincolnian, the student newspaper, that she "didn't come to Lincoln to be told that my weight is not in an acceptable range. I came here to get an education."
In an interview Friday, Lawson said she has no problem with getting healthy or losing weight. But she does have a problem with larger students being singled out.
"If Lincoln truly is concerned about everyone being healthy, then everyone should have to take this gym class, not just people who happen to be bigger," she said.
The mandate, which took effect for freshmen entering in fall 2006, requires students to get tested for their body mass index, a measure of weight to height.
A normal BMI is between 18.5 and 24.9. Students with one that's 30 or above -- considered obese -- are required to take a class called "Fitness for Life," which meets three hours a week.
The course involves walking, aerobics, weight training and other physical activities, as well as information on nutrition, stress and sleep, DeBoy said.
As of this fall, DeBoy estimated about 80 seniors -- 16 percent of the class -- had not had their body mass index tested nor taken the fitness class. Some of those students will likely be exempt from taking the class once they get their BMI results, he said.
Health experts applaud the school's intent, if not its execution. Mark Rothstein, director of the bioethics institute at the University of Louisville's School of Medicine, said being forced to disclose such health information is "at least awkward and often distasteful."
And it doesn't necessarily lead to the best outcomes, he said, noting that "when the (health) goals are imposed on people, they don't do that well in meeting them."
DeBoy stressed that students are not required to lose weight or lower their BMI; they must only pass the class through attendance and participation.
"It's the sound mind and the sound body concept," DeBoy said. "I think the university, to its credit, is trying to be proactive."
Some experts said recent amendments to the Americans with Disabilities Act might lead to exemptions for morbidly obese students, who could argue that participating in the class would be dangerous.
Also, students need more than exercise, said Marcia Costello, a registered dietitian in the Philadelphia area. The university should make sure its dining halls and vending machines offer healthy choices, she said.
Costello, an assistant professor of nursing at Villanova University, also noted that body mass index can be misleading. Since muscle weighs more than fat, "it is possible to be overweight and still be physically fit," she said.
Lawson, a mass communications major, said while she believes her current BMI would exempt her from the class, she's going to take it anyway "because I would like to be healthier."
"This was a decision that I made," she wrote in The Lincolnian, "and that's the way it ought to be."
