a controversial new children's book tackles the topic of childhood obesity called "maggie goes on a dieting the story a 14-year-old overweight girl named maggie. in the book maggie is bullied because of her weight. after changing her diet the pound fall off and maggie is transformed into a soccer star with a new group of friends. pediatricians and child psychologists say the story is sending a wrong message to overweight kids. >> never use the word diet with kids because it provokes an image of do this for a little while, done and it prediction the image that something is wrong with me, i need to diet and i need to change something. i need to do something different rather than promoting healthy lifestyle. >> i think people come in all different shapes and sizes and people need to realize that. sometimes anxious kids later develop depression and sometimes they develop self-esteem issues. >> we know self-esteem issues lead to eating disorders. a recent study but the department of health and human services show hospitalizations for eating disorders increased 119 between 1999 and twitch. the

andrea canning with the debate his book has created. >> reporter: on the cover of the new book "maggie goese 14-year-old is bullied relentlessly. she was teased and made fun of just about every day at school. she was called fat if i and chubby and other names that were very cruel. searching the refrigerator in hopes she wowod feel bet better eating lots of bread and cheeses including some cheddar but after losing a lot of weight but eating healthier weights and exercising more she makes new friends and transforms into a star soccer player. sheing looked forward to her saturday morning game. move and more people were gipping to know maggie by name. playing soccer gave magli popularity and fame. now, the book's weight loss message targeting girls as young as 6 is stirring up big controversy before it's even been released. negative comments have been flooding the internet. one person wrote "terrible reflection on our society. boycott the book. this is awful. another said "it takes so little to trigger eating disorders in children this. could be such a huge trigger." >> there is no question tha

. >> reporter: on the cover of the new book "maggie goes on a diet" maggie is seen dreaming of a thinner 14-year-old character is bullied relentlessly. maggie was teased and made fun of just about every day at school. she was called fatty and chubby and other names that were very cruel. searching the refrigerator in hopes she would feel better, eating lots of bread and cheeses, including some cheddar. but after losing a lot of weight by eating healthier foods like oatmeal and fruit and exercising more, maggie instantly makes new friends. now the book's weight loss message targeting girls as young as 6 is stirring up big controversy before it's even been released. >> there is no question that books like this that teach our kids to focus on what's outside and to suggest to them that popularity comes with being thin, it is the wrong message to send to our kids. >> reporter: in fact, a recent study shows eating disorders for children under 12 have increased by 119% over the past decade. taylor was a healthy 6-year-old but she said something that shocked her mother, tonya. >> she out of the b

on the cover of the new book maggie goes on a diet maggie is seen dreaming of a thinner self the fourteen year old character is bully relentlessly but after losing a lot of weight by eating healthier foods like oatmeal and fruits and exercising more making instantly makes new friends and even transforms into a star soccer player. what do you say andrew is that sending the wrong message to girl no no good for maggie because i mean i grew up in buffalo and i used either chicken wing or twenty with you know most meals and i could use a book like that when i was just before ten in the book some some. you know i mean i think no i think that this book is totally wrong though because why my dear editor is i know no let me finish from my experience the fact kid is always funny and has the most friends so i don't know there's a bad kid growing up i can vote just that i had on who are heads i don't know i am that everyone by were amazing and funny and i did you live in. the film. that's right there you see every day for the show if you experience. taking it as an arm i just think that people are fr

it's called maggie goes on a diet. kids aren't supposed to diet.ansforms hrs from a chubby teen to a slender soccer star. >>> i just really -- are they or aren't they splitting up? a report came out saying will smith and jada pinkett smith saying they're separating. the couple said no, way. now tmz reports no, they are having troubles and singer marc anthony may be at the heart of it. at this point, i just need to know. ♪ okay, so who ordered the cereal that can help lower cholesterol and who ordered the yummy cereal? yummy. that's yours. lower cholesterol. lower cholesterol. i'm yummy. lower cholesterol. i got that wrong didn't i? [ male announcer ] want great taste? honey nut cheerios. want whole grain oats that can help lower cholesterol? honey nut cheerios. it's a win win. good? [ crunching, sipping ] be happy. be healthy. can i try yours? >>> welcome back to msnbc. i'm contessa brewer. attorney general eric holder meets with some of the 9/11 family members about the phone hacking scandal this afternoon. the families requested the meeting. >>>

[applause] >> in the next award goes to maggie. please step to the podium. she has been a hearing officer for 11 years. she conducts a hearing for protests, parking citations, and burglar alarm penalties. she is in charge of administering and conducting coordination with federal and city agencies. penalties, she was instrumental in facilitating that. she is a diligent individual. for example, in 2009, she worked with the information technology subdivision to streamline the scheduling process and leaving countless hours of human labor. the acting director is here to present the award. >> i have asked her to come up and speak a few words. >> i want to thank her for her hard work and dedication. she really is a work force. she does what ever i s curve. she compiles all types of statistical reports. she has run the program very well and i am lucky to have an employee like her. >> i want to say thank you to everyone and i appreciated very much. >> thank you for the very difficult job that you do. [applause] >> the next award is being bestowed upon walter. leaves

heather: our next topic, author said he wrote this book, targeting childhood obesity but they say maggie goesecomes a soccer star after dropping the pounds and is pushing a diet message on kids as young as six years old. targeting for six to 12-year-olds specifically. >> it really is about making sure that your child eats healthy. you can show them without pushing them a diet down their throats. healthy choices, with diets come the connotation you have to be slim and thin. eating disorders can crop up as a result. >> and kids being kids, we play video games. we played outside and there was more physical activity. instead of writing books about diets and kids don't need more pressure than they already have, teach parents to do activities and have better food choices. >> the doctor on our panel. what do you have to say? >> absolutely. it shouldn't be about dieting for deigtd but about eating healthy. whatever you are going to show a six-year-old is not going to be on the same as what you are going to show a 12-year-old. you need to build self-esteem but these are consequences. i believe that ki

plus a continu controversial and his brand-new book, maggie goes on a diet.is book is for six years old. we'll talk about it in a few minutes. martha: that is problematic. coming up on "happening now." two huge stories breaking right now today, libya where there is pounding going on at moammar qaddafi's compound in tripoli. we're watching that story as it develops. also a monster storm, a hurricane heading towards the united states 100 miles per hour, cat 2 right now churning through the caribbean,ess expected to hit the bahamas and turks and cacos. we'll talk to somebody who is on the ground about the conditions. stay with us, "america's newsroom." hey can i play with the toys ? sure, but let get a little information first. for toys, say two. toys ! the system can't process your response at this time. what ? please call back between 8 and 5 central standard time. he's in control. goodbye. even kids know it's wrong to give someone the run around. at ally bank you never have to deal with an endless automated system. you can talk to a real person 24/7. it's jus

we're going to talk live to the author of "maggie goes on a diet", next.ox news alert, hurricane irene taking aim at the united states and according to the chief for the u.s. federal emergency department, he says basically, jon, the entire east coast of the country has to be on alert for irene. several days away now, but a big warning. jon: millions, millions of people could be in the line of this thing. wsbn's robert jordan spent a morning at a home depot store in miami. >> reporter: good morning, john jon and jenna. a lot of people are preparing for the storm and that means that home improvement stores are preparing for them, they've got the storm supplies out, things like batteries, flashlights, even sandbags in case there may be any flooding from the storm, and then there's this, very important rope, to secure any boats on the water as many people get ready for whatever irene might bring. >> we stay prepared, 12 months out of the year. >> reporter: how do you do that? buy ahead of time? >> i got a big box out in the garage that i keep hurricane supplie