Health Officer Dr. Bernard Eichold responds to American Medical Association's official designation of obesity as a disease

MOBILE, Ala. – It’s been called an epidemic for more than a decade now. And earlier this week, the nation’s largest physician’s group, the American Medical Association, voted to officially recognize obesity as a disease, a move that will likely have health care providers and insurance companies paying closer attention as more new diet drugs and weight loss procedures are introduced.

Dr. Bernard Eichold, Health Officer for the Mobile County Health Department, said he thought the move was a positive step meant to draw more attention to a critical problem plaguing millions of Americans.

"Having the diagnosis of a disease will help motivate patients to treat the condition," said Eichold.

Dr. Eichold was featured on the evening news on two television stations, WPMI and WKRG, this week.

At least one in four people in the U.S. is considered obese, health data shows. That number is much higher in Alabama and Mobile, with nearly one in three adults categorized as obese.

“Over nutrition is a real problem in Mobile County,” Eichold said. “Hopefully people will begin to take it more seriously. This is something that needs to be addressed. In and of itself, it can shorten your life.”

In making the decision to recognize the health condition as a disease, delegates at the association’s annual meeting in Chicago on Tuesday overrode a recommendation against doing so by a committee that had studied the matter, according to published reports.

 “Recognizing obesity as a disease will help change the way the medical community tackles this complex issue that affects approximately one in three Americans,” Dr. Patrice Harris, a member of the association’s board, said in a written statement. She suggested the new definition would help in the fight against Type 2 diabetes and heart disease, which are linked to obesity.

The AMA’s decision has no legal authority, health officials said.

Eichold, a medical doctor, said there are many small steps people can take to lose weight and lower their risks for developing other life-threatening diseases.

“It’s extremely important to look at your own weight and look at your Body Max Index and talk to your doctor about a personal intervention plan,” he said. “And remember, it’s probably going to take you as long to get out of the woods as it took you to get in the woods.”