One after another of these young people talked about finding not just a community of understanding at Mindstream, but a new family. They reported finding confidence they never had, self-esteem they had lost. They found self-respect, and purpose, and passion.

Children trying to overcome the burdens of obesity on their health and self-image are routinely obligated to weather a daily storm of bullying, abuse, and derision. They are denied the solace of friendship -- and often turn to food for comfort.

Fundamentally, we have converted a world in which calories were relatively scarce and hard to get and physical activity unavoidable into a world where physical activity is scarce and hard to get and calories are unavoidable.