A Legislative Menu of Bills Tackles Obesity in Maine

State lawmakers Friday unveiled what experts are calling the nation’s first comprehensive anti-obesity legislation -- a package of bills designed to slim down the fattest people in New England.

The legislation targets the sale of soft drinks and junk food in school vending machines throughout the state, calls for chain restaurants to display nutritional information, and would allow state transportation funds to be used to promote bicycling and other healthy forms of getting around.

Maine lawmakers introduced the bills in response to what the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has warned is a growing obesity epidemic that threatens the health of millions of Americans.

More than 60% of Americans are overweight, and more than 30% are obese -- meaning they carry so much extra weight that their health is at risk.

Obesity can lead to diabetes, heart disease and some forms of cancer.

Democratic state Rep. Sean Faircloth, one of the sponsors of the legislation, called obesity the No. 1 health issue of the new century and said the state is paying close to $1 billion in obesity-related health-care costs.

A recent report found that Maine, with 1.25 million residents, had the highest obesity rate among the six New England states over the last three years. Over a 20-year period, adult obesity rates have jumped 50% in Maine, the report said.