"We're not leading as adults. Kids see us eating things fast because we have to go to a meeting or a soccer practice, and we're throwing them McDonald's in the back seat to eat on the way. When the kids are getting picked up at school, it's unbelievable what the parents are handing them."

Pat Weiland, veteran physical education teacher, Blessed Sacrament School, Fort Mitchell

Nutrition education

"If we don't start teaching our

children how to take care of their bodies - the nutrition piece - when they're blind, on dialysis, it

will break our back. Diabetes is

already the most expensive disease in our country."

Jamie Gindele, parent, volunteer, Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation

Evolution of weight gain

"If you think about millions of years of evolution, there's never been a reason until recently to limit fat. It was always hard to get food; you had to expend physical energy to get food. It's only in the last 75 to 100 years that the balance has changed."

Dr. Stephen Daniels, cardiologist, Children's Hospital Medical Center

Insurance and obesity

"I think making obesity a covered diagnosis by insurance companies is an important step. Right now, it's not covered, and that is a big barrier. You say bring your child back so we can check his weight in six months, but families are not going to come back because it's not covered. "

Dr. Camille Graham, pediatrician, Children's Hospital Medical Center

Cincinnati Porkopolis

"The city needs to make kids'

wellness a priority. Columbus has taken some strides, but Cincinnati is Porkopolis. We need to make it a

priority - Porkopolis prevention. Public officials need to push this forward."

Keith King, assistant professor, health promotion and education, University of Cincinnati

Crackers and Ho-Hos

"This week I saw a 3-year-old

who weighed 92 pounds. I asked his mother, 'What does he eat?' She said, 'Well, he eats all the time. He loves his crackers and Ho-Hos.' I said, 'How does he get that? Does he walk to the store?'"

Dr. Michael Farrell, Chief of staff, Children's Hospital Medical Center

A weighty issue

"There are public health campaigns that have worked. Look at smoking cessation. Lexington is going smoke-free, and Fayette County is the second-largest producer of burley tobacco in the U.S. But the weight problem is not going to be an easy one."

Dr. William Hacker, acting commissioner of public health for Kentucky

Undernourished kids

"There is lots of evidence to show kids are eating a greater number of calories and burning a lot fewer calories through physical activity. Yet they're still undernourished. The quality of American children's diet is very poor."

Lauren Niemes, executive director, Greater Cincinnati Nutrition Council