New Jersey Governor Chris Christie made a huge announcement to the The New York Post—but not the one everyone has been expecting. The paper reported on Tuesday that the famously rotund Christie underwent "lap-band" stomach surgery three months ago, in a desperate effort to lose weight. The procedure, which involves placing a restrictive tube around the top of the stomach to limit the amount of food a person can take in at one sitting, is considered less risky than the more invasive gastric bypass surgery. Christie didn't reveal what his weight was before or after the surgery, but sources say he's already lost 40 pounds.
Naturally, the first instinct from political pundits is to assume that Christie's dramatic decision is about more than just getting fit. The obvious spin is that this is the first salvo of Christie's 2016 presidential campaign. (The second might be another announcement that he's co-hosting the Today show in a couple weeks.) It doesn't take a strategic genius like Karl Rove to tell you that being overweight would have been a huge liability in a national campaign, but if the summer of 2015 rolls around and he's suddenly looking fit and trim, he might look like a front runner.
Personally, I think that's less of the issue as it is his health. He's got kids, and he wants to live to see them grow up, I'm sure. Here's my real question, not why he did it, but did his insurance cover it? Christie has signed on for Obamacare's Medicaid expansion, sure. But does he think his surgery was medically necessary, and should insurance be required to help cover it when it is?
Given the obesity epidemic in the US -- and yes, I consider myself part of it -- I would like to hear Gov. Christie's thoughts on his procedure and if he thinks his New Jersey constituents should qualify for similar procedures. That's the far more important question to me.
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I try to keep from gaining weight, and it's hard. Particularly when stuff sneaks into your diet that you don't recognize at first as being loaded with calories or saturated fat. Just one small example is bread & butter pickles. The second ingredient by weight in the jar is high fructose corn syrup. Went to dill pickles after I noticed that and didn't miss them. And I make sure not to spend my calories on drinks, glass of wine or two excepted. Unsweetened ice tea, e.g., makes the meal taste better. And after staying away from McD's for a month, I found I'd lost about 5 pounds. And all I was getting there was the filet-of-fish 2 or three times a week.
I say that every 6 or 8 weeks a person should go through what they're eating and review the dietary labels. Stuff you think is okay often isn't, and actually some stuff you might worry about is not that bad. E.g., I like the Gardetto snack mix and if you can believe the diet label on the bag, it's a fairly guilt-free treat.
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