You are fat—either cut it or we will

“Is Obesity the Government’s Business?

Watch—and participate in—the Slate/Intelligence Squared live debate on Feb. 7.

By Katy Waldman|Posted Monday, Jan. 30, 2012, at 5:37 PM ET

Doctors and public policy officials across the country have sounded the alarm about the obesity epidemic. More than one-third of American adults are obese—and another one-third are overweight—while rates for children have tripled since the 1970s. Obesity may put us at an increased risk for heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, cancer, stroke, and other illnesses. And aside from its human costs, among them mortality, morbidity, and discrimination, obesity is responsible for $150 billion annually in medical costs.

At the same time, however, new research suggests that the links between body weight and health are more tenuous than we thought. Some fear that a “moral panic” over fat will divert government funds and energies from real health concerns, such as hypertension. Others are wary about federal trespasses on their individual rights. Should the government intervene to stem the rising tide of obesity, or should the battle of the bulge be fought at home?

Four medical and health care policy luminaries will tackle these questions at the next Slate/Intelligence Squared U.S. live debate on Feb. 7 at NYU’s Skirball Center in New York City. We’d like to invite you to attend—we’re offering Slate readers a 30 percent discount on tickets (see below)—and we hope you will use the comments section of this article to submit questions for the debaters. We’ll pick the most interesting one, and moderator John Donvan will ask it at the event. Be sure to include your full name and hometown with your question.

The motion for the debate is “Obesity is the Government’s Business.” WebMD Chief Lifestyle Expert Dr. Pamela Peeke will partner with former U.S. Surgeon General Dr. David Satcher to support the motion that government has a role to play in fighting obesity. They will argue that federal initiatives achieve results private ones can’t match, and that the medical, economic, and psychological stakes of obesity are too high to ignore. Meanwhile, Paul Campos, a law professor and author ofThe Obesity Myth, will team up with Fox News anchor John Stossel to oppose the motion, contending that peoples’ waistlines are their own responsibility. For Stossel, the idea of government intervention conjures up scenes from dystopian fiction—agents snatching cupcakes from our hands or forcing us onto treadmills. Campos, less concerned about preserving basic American liberties and more intent on reducing the stigma associated with obesity, believes that the government should promote nutritious foods and active lifestyles for their proven health benefits, but leave body size out of the equation. “