Drawing experts from the fields of medicine, nutrition, fitness and professional athletics, Mayor Julián Castro convened a new panel Monday that will focus on reducing the city's obesity rate and promoting a healthier, more active community.

"We must act boldly to take San Antonio off the list of fattest cities in America and put it squarely on the road to becoming one of the fittest in the nation," said Mayor Castro.

Castro charged the Mayor's Fitness Council, which includes more than 30 community leaders representing a cross-section of the city, with looking at the intersection between quality of life issues and two of the city's most pressing medical challenges: obesity and diabetes.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than two-thirds of Bexar County residents are considered either overweight or obese. San Antonio's rate of diabetes is among the highest in the nation.

"We cannot afford to fail," said Castro. "These issues don't just impact individuals. They have a profoundly negative impact on children, spouses and our health care system."

At the inaugural meeting Monday, the Mayor introduced the council's three co-chairs:

• Tony Canty, Chairman of the Greater San Antonio YMCA, and the CFO and CIO of Labatt Foods;
• Dr. Amelie Ramirez, Professor of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at The University of Texas Health Science Center, and founding director of the Institute for Health Promotion Research (IHPR);
• and Wane McGarity, former Dallas Cowboy, San Antonio native and current director of Health and Wellness at H-E-B.

Over the coming year, the Mayor's Fitness Council will take the lead on developing a comprehensive plan to transform the health and fitness of the city. Those measures will include improving nutrition in schools, improving wellness programs at major employers and suggesting ways for the city to make it easier for San Antonians to become more physically active.

In March, the City's Metro Health Department was awarded a $15.6 million grant by the Obama Administration to tackle obesity. The Mayor said he envisions the Fitness Council playing a complementary role by building a sustainable organizational structure that will continue to address health and fitness issues after the 18-month federal stimulus grant.