The rising cost of health care in the United States affects not just individuals, but also the functionality of the economy and government, according to Dr. Tyler Cooper, CEO of Cooper Aerobics in Dallas.

Cooper will speak at Baylor University on Thursday, Oct. 30, as part of the Distinguished Lecture Series of the Baylor School of Education. A graduate of the Hankamer School of Business, Cooper is on the Dean’s Advisory Council for the School of Education.

Cooper says that lifestyle choices are a significant part of the health-care crisis, with the estimated annual health-care costs of obesity-relates illnesses topping $190 billion.

“The problem is very real,” Cooper says. “In order for significant improvement to occur, achievable, realistic and affordable policies and education must occur.”

But Americans are having trouble agreeing on solutions because of the variety in their beliefs and ethical views, Cooper says. His lecture will focus on understanding the ethics behind health-care decisions and how that understanding can lead to successful collaboration.

Cooper grew up in a family where health was the focus. Eight days before he was born, his father founded the famed Cooper Aerobics Center in Dallas. Weekend family time for the Coopers included a three-mile Sunday afternoon jog.

Cooper Aerobics celebrates 45 years of health and wellness in 2015. Dr. Kenneth H. Cooper pioneered the field of preventive medicine and concept of healthy lifestyles in 1970 and continues to be an international authority on how to live a longer, healthier life.

After graduating from Baylor University with a bachelor of business administration, Cooper worked abroad and in business development for Cooper Aerobics for several years before deciding to follow his father’s footsteps and enter medical school. He received his medical degree from The University of Texas Medical School at San Antonio and a master of public health (MPH) in health-care management from Harvard University. He completed his internship in family practice at Riverside Regional Medical Center in Newport News, Va., and his preventive medicine residency at The University of South Carolina. He joined Cooper Clinic as a preventive medicine physician in 2006.

As President and CEO of Cooper Aerobics, Cooper now oversees all seven for-profit companies under the Cooper Aerobics umbrella.

Baylor School of Education Dean Dr. Jon Engelhardt has known Cooper for many years and said he chose Cooper for his expertise and thoughtfulness on health-care issues.

“Dr. Cooper is a foremost expert on wellness and a broad advocate for the role of exercise as a critical element in promoting and maintaining health. He is a deep thinker, broadly speaks on critical issues of health care and cares deeply about issues of education. This lecture is intended for a broad audience. Those from the general public, those who have technical backgrounds, those interested in future careers in health care, and those concerned for the health and wellness of all Americans should enjoy and be stimulated by this lecture.”