Columbia, S.C. – May 4,
2005 –Gov. Mark Sanford and First Lady Jenny Sanford today
unveiled two new additions to the “2005 Healthy South Carolina
Challenge,” the “Healthy County Challenge” and the “Healthy
Community Challenge.” The twin fitness initiatives will put
South Carolina counties and communities in friendly
competition with one another to improve the health of their
citizens. Specifically, the county and community organization
that show the most improvement in a) reducing smoking, b)
increasing physical activity and c) lowering BMI (body mass
index) will be invited to the Governor’s Mansion for a special
Awards Ceremony next spring.
“That’s
not a typo – we’re going to invite the entire population of
the county that wins to a big party at the Governor’s
Mansion,” Gov. Sanford said. “We think it’s critically
important that South Carolinians get more active and this kind
of competition is a great way of raising the bar for
everybody. It’s outcome-based, which is what we’re getting at
with our health care prevention grants. We’ve got to a better
job as a state of rewarding things on the front end that
encourage healthier living, because ultimately that saves
lives and can save our state millions in treatment costs on
the back end.”
Joined by mascots from
South Carolina’s colleges and professional sports teams as
well as media personalities from across the state, the
governor and First Lady kicked off the “Healthy South Carolina
Challenge” by participating in an afternoon of healthy games
and friendly competition at the Governor’s Mansion. U.S. Sen.
Lindsey Graham’s office also participated. The First Family
escalated their efforts to promote healthier lifestyle choices
among South Carolinians after recent reports indicated the
poor condition of our state’s health. A 2004 study by the
Center for Disease Control found 61.3 percent of South
Carolinians are considered overweight, while 24.3 percent of
the state population smokes and 23.8 percent fail to engage in
even the slightest physical activity. During the same period,
the United Health Foundation ranked South Carolina’s health
46th out of the 50 states.
For more information on
the “Healthy South Carolina Challenge” visit the website at .
Click on the image below to see the obesity trend in South
Carolina over the past 15 years.