eating contribute to obesity, cancer, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes. disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, arthritis-related disabilities, and some …
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention
and Health Promotion
Physical Activity and Good Nutrition:
Essential Elements to Prevent Chronic Diseases and Obesity
At A Glance
2003
http://wwwcdcgov/nccdphp/dnpa
As a society, we can no longer afford to make poor health choices such as
being physically inactive and eating an unhealthy diet; these choices have
led to a tremendous obesity epidemic As policy makers and health
professionals, we must embrace small steps toward coordinated policy and
environmental changes that will help Americans live longer, better,
healthier lives
Vice Admiral Richard H Carmona, MD, MPH, FACS
United States Surgeon General
Acting Assistant Secretary for Health
Percentage of Adults Who Report Being Obese, by State
Body mass index greater than or equal to 30 or about 30 pounds overweight
for a 54 person
Source:
CDC, Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System
The Importance of Physical Activity and Good Nutrition
Chronic diseases account for 7 of every 10 US deaths and for more than
60 of medical care expenditures In addition, the prolonged illness and
disability associated with many chronic diseases decrease the quality of
life for millions of Americans
Much of the chronic disease burden is preventable Physical inactivity and
unhealthy eating contribute to obesity, cancer, cardiovascular disease, and
diabetes Together, these two behaviors are responsible for at least
300,000 deaths each year Only tobacco use causes more preventable deaths
in the United States People who avoid the behaviors that increase their
risk for chronic diseases can expect to live healthier and longer lives
The Obesity Epidemic
Following dramatic increases in overweight and obesity among US adults
between 1987 and 2000, obesity has reached epidemic proportions; nearly 59
million adults are obese Moreover, the epidemic is not limited to adults:
the percentage of young people who are overweight has more than doubled in
the last 20 years Of children and adolescents aged 6-19 years, 15-about 9
million
young people-are considered overweight
People who are overweight are at increased risk for heart disease, high
blood pressure, diabetes, arthritis-related disabilities, and some cancers
The estimated annual cost of obesity and overweight in the United States is
about 117 billion
Promoting regular physical activity and healthy eating and creating an
environment that supports these behaviors are essential to reducing this
epidemic of obesity
Lack of Physical Activity
Regular physical activity reduces peoples risk for heart attack, colon
cancer, diabetes, and high blood pressure, and may reduce their risk for
stroke It also helps to control weight; contributes to healthy bones,
muscles, and joints; reduces falls among the elderly; helps to relieve the
pain of arthritis; reduces symptoms of anxiety and depression; and is
associated with fewer hospitalizations, physician visits, and medications
Moreover, physical activity need not be strenuous to be beneficial; people
of all ages benefit from moderate physical activity, such as 30 minutes of
brisk walking five or more times a week
Despite the proven benefits of physical activity, more than 60 of American
adults do not get enough
physical activity to provide health benefits More
than 25 are not active at all in their leisure time Activity decreases
with age, and sufficient activity is less common among women than men and
among those with lower incomes and less education
Insufficient physical activity is not limited to adults More than a third
of young people in grades 9-12 do not regularly engage in vigorous physical
activity Daily participation in high school physical education classes
dropped from 42 in 1991 to 29 in 1999
The Critical Role of Healthy Eating
Research shows that good nutrition lowers peoples risk for many chronic
diseases, including heart disease, stroke, some types of cancer, diabetes,
and osteoporosis For example, for at least 10 million Americans at risk
for type 2 diabetes, proper nutrition and physical activity can sharply
lower their chances of getting the disease
Although Americans are slowly adopting healthier diets, a large gap remains
between recommended dietary patterns and what Americans actually eat Only
about one-fourth of US adults eat the recommended five or more servings
of fruits and vegetables each day
Poor eating habits are often established during childhood More
than 60 of
young people eat too much fat, and less than 20 eat the recommended five
or more servings of fruits and vegetables each day
Percentage of Adults Who Reported Eating Fewer Than Five Servings of Fruits
and Vegetables a Day, by Sex, 2000
Source: CDC, Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System
CDCs National Leadership
In fiscal year 2002, Congress appropriated 275 million for CDC to address
physical inactivity, poor nutrition, and obesity These funds allowed CDC
to support 12 states to plan for and initiate nutrition and physical
activity programs to help prevent and control obesity and other chronic
diseases With fiscal year 2003 funding of 34 million, CDC will expand
these programs and support research to increase physical activity and
improve nutrition in states and communities
Expanding the Knowledge Base
The landmark Physical Activity and Health: A Report of the Surgeon General,
published in 1996, brought together the results of decades of research on
physical activity and health CDC research is continuing to shed light on
the role of physical activity and nutrition in health:
A CDC analysis of
data from the Bogalusa, Louisiana, heart study found
that overweight and obesity among children aged 5-17 years had more
than tripled from 1973 to 1994 in that community Moreover, 58 of
overweight children had at least one additional risk factor for
cardiovascular disease
In 2001, CDC released the physical activity chapter in the Guide to
Community Preventive Services The Guide comes from an evidence-based
review of studies in several different areas by the Task Force on
Community Preventive Services and identifies science-based strategies
to increase physical activity among children and adults
Through CDCs Prevention Research Centers network, CDC and the
National Institutes of Health developed better methods to measure
physical activity levels among minority and low-income women older
than 40
CDC is collecting information to better understand factors that affect
levels of walking and cycling The GreenStyles Survey, supported by
CDC and the Environmental Protection Agency, assesses the effects of
environmental, social, and personal variables on walking and cycling
CDC is also
working with partners to collect information on how bike
paths and sidewalks affect rates of physical activity
Promoting Healthy Lifestyles
Since the 1950s, the infrastructure to support walking and bicycling in the
United States has been neglected Trips made by walking or cycling have
declined by more than 40 since 1977 CDCs Active Community Environments
initiative works with partners to promote the development of accessible
recreation facilities and more opportunities for walking and cycling
Current projects include
Encouraging children to walk to and from school in groups accompanied
by adults, through CDCs KidsWalk-to-School Program Walking to school
helps children be more physically active, practice safe pedestrian
skills, and learn about their environment
Partnering with the National Park Services Rivers, Trails, and
Conservation Assistance Program to promote the development and use of
neighborhood parks and recreation facilities
Developing a guidebook for public health practitioners to use in
working with transportation and city-planning organizations to promote
walking, cycling, and neighborhood
recreation facilities
The National 5 A Day program, launched 10 years ago, is implementing
recommendations from a recent comprehensive review The most significant
recommendations were to strengthen and expand the organizational structure
of this program to include new partners, and to support research,
surveillance, and applied public health programs to increase vegetable and
fruit consumption The National Cancer Institute, the US Department of
Agriculture, and CDC are defining the roles and responsibilities of each
partner in the new model
CDC and its partners have developed the HHS Blueprint for Action on
Breastfeeding, which establishes a comprehensive national breastfeeding
policy Breastfeeding protects against obesity and increases the
acceptability of fruits and vegetables among infants
CDC Funding for Physical Activity and Nutrition Programs to Address Chronic
Diseases and Obesity, Fiscal Year 2002
Promoting the Use of Growth Charts
In 2000, CDC released new pediatric growth charts that better reflect the
nations diversity In addition to revising the existing charts, which are
used to track growth, CDC added two
body-mass-index-for-age charts to help
health professionals identify weight problems among children and
adolescents CDC also provides Web-based interactive training modules and
resources wwwcdcgov/growthcharts to help users interpret the growth
charts
Future Directions
CDC will continue to work with its public health partners to create and
modify programs, policies, and practices that support healthy lifestyles
In addition, CDC is striving to expand health communications to promote
physical activity and good nutrition in work sites, schools, and health
care settings
CDC is working with HHS to develop and implement Steps to a HealthierUS, a
new initiative that advances the Presidents HealthierUS goal of helping
Americans live longer, better, and healthier lives Through the Steps
initiative, CDCs National Nutrition and Physical Activity Program to
Prevent Obesity and Other Chronic Diseases will partner with other HHS
agencies and local, state, and federal organizations to support programs
that foster healthy lifestyle choices such as good nutrition and regular
physical activity
For more information or additional copies of this document, please contact
the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention
and Health Promotion
Mail Stop K-46
4770 Buford Highway, NE
Atlanta, GA 30341-3717
770 488-5820
Fax 770 488-6000
ccdinfo@cdcgov
http://wwwcdcgov/nccdphp/dnpa
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