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Good nutrition, physical activity and healthy body weight
Good nutrition, physical activity and healthy body weight The overall well-being and health of a person depend on several factors such as physical activity, proper nutrition, and healthy body weight.
When these are combined, they reduce your risk of developing severe health conditions like diabetes, high cholesterol, stroke, high blood pressure, cancer and heart disease.
It is essential to maintain a healthy weight, eat a good diet and undertake physical activity regularly to manage such health conditions and ensure that they do not deteriorate over time.
Unfortunately, most Americans do not eat a healthy diet, and they are also not physically active. Fruits and vegetables are glaringly absent from most of their diets, and adolescents have even lower intake. Their daily input does not meet the recommended levels, and they are not getting the right amount of daily exercise.
Due to this, there has been an increase in obesity across the nation, with about 1 in every three adults and 1 in 6 children being obese.
Some of the adverse health conditions related to obesity include stroke, heart disease and type 2 diabetes. These are known to be the leading causes of death and have led to an increase in medical costs and overburdening the medical care delivery system.
It is essential to ensure that everyone has a healthy diet and regularly participates in physical activity to reach and maintain healthy body weight. It also contributes to improved health for people of all ages.
Health Impact of Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity
Staying physically active and eating a healthy diet is quite essential and can help you in several ways like:-
- Achieve and maintain a healthy body weight
- Minimize the risk of stroke and heart disease
- Reduce the risk of cancer
- Stronger muscles, joints and bones
- Improved mood and energy levels
Of all these benefits, the greatest is reducing the risk of obesity. Obesity is one of the most severe risk factors for most chronic diseases and conditions we experience today. It can also be linked to certain forms of cancer, and as such, it is essential to curb it whenever possible.
A healthy diet combined with regular physical exercise is some of the most effective ways of keeping obesity in check, contributing to the reduced occurrence of the associated diseases and health conditions.
Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity Across the Life Stages
No matter your age, regular physical activity, a good and healthy diet, and healthy body weight are essential. They impact every stage of life and ensure that you can grow up strong and healthy.
Children
Adolescents and children that eat a proper diet will be more likely to achieve a healthy weight have proper growth and development.
Additionally, the proper diet adds to their immunity and makes them capable of fighting off infections and healing faster from diseases. Physical activity is also essential and enables them to have better muscle growth, stronger bones and a healthy heart.
The children that are obese are at a higher risk of heart disease and diabetes. They will also be more likely to be overweight into adulthood, and as such, they will be more likely to develop other chronic diseases.
Adults
Adults who observe a healthy diet and participate in regular physical exercises can reduce their risk for many diseases and health conditions such as diabetes and heart disease.
They also get to reduce their risk of depression when they engage in regular physical activity, which causes them to be in a better mental state and overall health. Additionally, these adults are less likely to develop illnesses that will cause them to die earlier.
Pregnant Women
For the healthy development and growth of the infant, the pregnant mother needs to be healthy. This is best achieved through proper nutrition and regularly ensuring an intake of fruits and vegetables.
Labor is much easier when the pregnant woman has been taking part in regular physical activity, and they also get to have a lower risk of suffering from postpartum depression.
There will also be fewer complications during pregnancy when the mother is healthy and observes a proper diet with all the required nutritional elements to keep them strong. This is important for both the mother and the infant and ensures that they stay healthy and strong.
Determinants of Nutrition, Physical Activity and Obesity
Several factors impact the ability of a person to eat a healthy diet and maintain good physical activity in addition to being at a healthy weight. The availability of fruits and vegetables, for instance, will determine whether someone can include these in their diet.
Somewhere to be active, such as a park or a sports field, is also essential for being physically active. In addition, other individuals and social factors determine the health of a person.
When all these factors are addressed, it will be possible to make any progress against the obesity epidemic facing the nation and the associated impact on health. For instance, people who have proper nutrition can get all the essential nutrients needed to boost their immunities.
As such, they will easily fight off any infections and stay healthy. Additionally, good physical activity done regularly enables the person to stay in good shape and maintain proper body weight. With these essential tips kept in mind, meeting the required goals for staying healthy and maintaining a healthy weight will be much easier.
Where We’ve Been and Where We’re Going
There were Federal Physical Activity Guidelines released in 2008, and in 2020, the Healthy People physical activity objective was developed. The rate of adults adhering to these guidelines has been increased. This shows some positive progress and the impact that regulations by the Federal Government have been able to achieve.
Physical Activity
The Healthy People 2020 objective PA-2.4 keeps track of the ratio of adults that are reported to be meeting the current federal physical activity guidelines for muscle-strengthening activity and aerobic physical activity.
These people have at least 75 minutes of vigorous physical activity per week. In 2008, 18.2% of adults met the guidelines, which shows an improvement in the uptake of physical activity among adults.
White, non-Hispanic adults marked the highest number of people that met the guidelines at 25.7%. The rates for the other ethnic groups were as follows:-
- American Indian or Alaska Native: 19.1%
- Non-Hispanic black: 19.9%
- Hispanic: 21.4%
- Native Hawaiian: 21.9%
- Asian: 22.9%
- Identified with two or more races: 2.8%
Adult men had a 31.8% higher rate of adhering to the current federal guidelines for physical activity than women (27.4%) in 2018. for adults over the age of 25, the ones with advanced degrees had the highest rate of meeting the guidelines according to the 2018 figures. For the other education groups, the rates were as follows:-
- Less than high school: 9.8%
- High school graduates: 14.6%
- Some college education: 20.8%
- Associate’s degree: 22.9%
- 4-year college degree: 30.1%
In terms of age groups, the adults between 18-24 years were observed to be at the highest rate of meeting the guidelines for physical activity set by the federal government at 34%. For other age groups, the rates were as listed below:-
- 25-44 years: 28.6%
- 45-54 years: 21.3%
- 55-64 years: 18.2%
- 65-74 years: 16.4%
- 75-84 years: 11.5%
- 85 years and over: 6.8%
The adults between the ages of 18-64 who had private health insurance were at the highest rate of meeting the guidelines for physical activity at 30.4%. The ones with public insurance had a rate of 16.3%, while the uninsured were at 17.2%. More adults with private insurance met the guidelines as opposed to the adults with public insurance.
In 2018, the adults in families that had an income six times or more of the poverty threshold had the highest rate of physical activity at 35.1%. The rates for other income groups were as follows:-
- Below the poverty threshold: 13.7%
- 1X-1.9X the poverty threshold: 15.7%
- 2X-3.9X the poverty threshold: 21.4%
- 4X-5.9X the poverty threshold: 27.4%
According to the same study, the adults living in metropolitan areas had a higher rate of meeting the guidelines for physical activity than the adults in non-metropolitan areas at 58.4%. The adults born in the US were observed to have a higher rate than those born outside the US at 23.2%.
People that were divorced or separated were also noted to have the highest rate of meeting the federal guidelines for physical activity at 25.5%. The rates for the other groups by marital status were as follows:-
- Married: 23.9%
- Never married: 22.1%
- Cohabiting: 21.9%
- Widowed: 13.1%
These figures show the rate at which people take part in regular physical activity. Physical activity is an essential component of a healthy life, strong immunity and maintaining a recommended body weight. Without good physical activity, people are more likely to develop a whole load of sicknesses and gain a lot of weight.
Proper physical activity has several benefits, such as clearing the mind, improving the flow of blood and other fluids within the body and keeping the person healthier. It is also one of the best ways to prevent obesity, and this is also known to protect the person from many health conditions and illnesses related to obesity.
Someone who exercises regularly will not have to worry about falling sick since they have stronger immunity. As such, they can easily fight off all kinds of infections and maintain a healthy lifestyle that has the proper physical exercise.
It is also important that all physical exercise and activity is accompanied by the proper diet, good nutrition and the regular intake of water and other fluids. This ensures that the body systems are adequately maintained, and the person can maintain proper health.
By eating correctly, someone will give their body all the nutrients needed for proper growth and fending off diseases. Fruits and vegetables are a diet component that many people often ignore or overlook.
However, it is quite an essential component of proper nutrition. Whenever someone has the proper intake of these foods, they can obtain the necessary vitamins and nutrients responsible for improving the body's immunity.
These foods are also suitable for controlling obesity. When someone replaces the meat in their diet with fruits and vegetables, they will grow healthier and easily fight off diseases.
A lifestyle change is recommended for people that have not been eating correctly or getting the right amount of regular exercise. Without proper nutrition and exercise, many people are likely to lose focus on keeping themselves healthy. They will also develop weight and are more likely to become obese. Obesity is associated with many chronic diseases and health conditions that are also life-threatening.
For this reason, you must have the recommended amounts of fruits and vegetables in your diet and get the proper amounts of physical exercise.
Regardless of your age, it is essential to stay healthy and take proper care of your body. You can only achieve this when you have good nutrition and take in the right kinds and amounts of foods.
You should also ensure that your entire diet is balanced and has all the essential components required by your body. Additionally, getting proper physical exercise regularly will ensure that you can maintain healthy body weight.
Whenever you have physical activity regularly, you will keep your joints smooth, and your entire body will be flexible and healthy. You will also be able to burn off excess calories, further contributing to your overall health.
The combination of proper nutrition and physical activity has led to a healthy body weight which is much easier to maintain. As long as you pay attention to what you eat and how often you exercise, taking care of yourself will be much easier.
You will be able to stay healthy, and you will also have reduced your risk of developing a vast range of health conditions and illnesses. By avoiding obesity, you can stay healthier since you will also avoid a whole load of chronic health conditions.
