Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move fitness initiative, the rallying cry to end obesity in children in this generation, is rooted in her own childhood, she says. The current emphasis in discussion of the initiative has been on the nutrition element, but in the coming weeks, the fitness element will be unveiled.

“If kids are naturally active, they shouldn’t have to worry about what they eat. That’s how it was when we were growing up. Nobody talked to you about nutrition. You ate your vegetables. You ate what was on your plate. And you went outside and played. There wasn’t a need for structured activity,” she says in an interview from her office. “The physical education piece is about exploring that. In our nation, what happened? What have been the cultural trends that have led us away from that regular exercise and activity that kids used to get?”

Carnie Wilson, daughter of beloved Beach Boys singer Brian Wilson, is a mom of two daughters. In the spotlight from a young age, her weight has been a much commented upon subject. The star of the GSN show Carnie Wilson: Unstapled, Wilson had gastric bypass in the 1990s when she was over 300 pounds. Her weight fluctuated since, hindered by a 70-pound weight gain in her first pregnancy and 60 pounds in her second. Describing herself as a life-long sugar addict, she says that she never learned to eat correctly and used her pregnancies as a convenient excuse to eat the foods she wanted.

Now she’s partnering with Dr. Oz and Fresh Diet, a food delivery company, to lose the extra weight in a healthy manner. Wilson says that she’s struggled her entire life with good diet choices.

When I was much heavier, I had a massive soda addiction. I drank more than a 2 liter a day. (I know. I’m hanging my head in shame right now.) Part of that came from a daily stop at McDonald’s to grab an extra large Coke on the way to pick up the kids. I see other people doing this exact same thing all the time, and it’s everything I can do to keep my mouth shut. I don’t think anyone wants to hear my input on how bad their soda intake is for them, but I wonder if the government spoke up – would it have an affect?

Several of the nation’s leading health experts are calling for a tax on soda and other sugar-sweetened drinks as a means of curbing America’s ever growing obesity epidemic, with children as the age bracket with the highest levels of rising obesity. A report was recently published in the New England Journal of Medicine touting the benefits of such a tax.

From the report:

“We can raise much-needed dollars while likely reducing obesity prevalence, which is a major driver of health care costs,” the paper states. “Ultimately the government needs to raise more money to cover the deficit, and in terms of ways of raising that revenue, a tax on sugar sweetened beverages is really a no-brainer.”

Constantly bombarded by images of super skinny, size 0 models and movie stars such as Mary-Kate Olsen, teenage girls are sent overwhelming messages to be skinnier, smaller, and even tinier than ever. One tool that many young girls are turning to is the use of diet pills, such as hoodia and Hydroxycut.

A 2006 University of Minnesota found that more than 20% of 19-year-old girls confess to using diet pills. “These numbers are startling, and they tell us we need to do a better job of helping our daughters feel better about themselves and avoid unhealthy weight control behaviors,” University of Minnesota professor and study researcher Dianne Neumark-Sztainer said. (Neumark-Sztainer is also the author of the popular book, “I’m, Like, So Fat!“.)

Diet pills are ineffective and in many cases, extremely dangerous, even to the point of being linked to death in users. The study also found that more than 62% of teenage girls use unhealthy weight control behaviors, including the use of diet pills, laxatives, vomiting or skipping meals to control their weight. The study found that teenage males had rates that were less than half of the females. So, clearly, there is a problem facing our girls.

What can we do to help our daughters avoid these unhealthy actions?

In an effort to be competitive with other restaurant promotions, such as IHOP’s offering of Never Ending Pancakes on February 24, Denny’s has come out with a whopper of a bad idea. Starting now and continuing through the end of March, Denny’s is offering unlimited free refills of both French fries and pancakes at participating locations nationwide. Valid 24 hours a day, seven days a week, the offer applies to any order of French fries or pancakes served with an entrée, including both original buttermilk pancakes and Denny’s Hearty Wheat pancakes.

“Clearly times are still hard and everyday we’re all looking for ways to stretch hard-earned dollars farther and farther,” said John Dillon, Vice President Marketing, Denny’s Corporation. “By offering unlimited refills on not just one but two favorite items, we are able to provide even more everyday value on items our guests love. Who doesn’t want seconds of pancakes and fries… especially when they’re free?”

Repeat after me – free is not always good. And often free comes with a non-monetary price tag.