The nutrition and fitness goals in Health People 2010 are to promote health and to reduce chronic diseases caused by improper diet and excessive weight gain. No significant progress was noticed towards this objective. The Health People 2020 nutrition and fitness goal is therefore, to promote health and reduce chronic disease risk through consumption of healthful diets and achievement of healthy body weight. Only efforts that are able to bring about change in the individual behavior, and in the environment that support these behavior, will enable the achievement of Healthy People objective. ("Nutrition and Weight Status | Healthy People 2020", 2017)
Healthy diet encompasses a variety of nutrient rich food like: whole grains, fruits, vegetables, low fat milk, lean meat, and other products. Balanced and nutritious diet are essential for growth and development. Unhealthy diet can lead to obesity, overweight, malnutrition and other chronic health disorders that can affect the quality of life and causes disability. (Edelman, Kudzma, & Mandle, 2010; "Nutrition and Overweight: Chapter 19", 2017)
Body weight is another important objective of the Healthy People 2010 and 2020. The excess calories that the individual consumes more than required for maintaining a normal body weight, is stored as adipose tissue. Accumulation of adipose tissue over a period of time causes overweight and obesity. Obesity is highly prevalent in the U.S and it predisposes Americans to a number of health problems and also reduces life span. Healthy People initiative has recognized reducing obesity, as a panacea to many health problems in the population. ("Nutrition and Overweight: Chapter 19", 2017)
References
Edelman, C., Kudzma, E., & Mandle, C. (2010). Health promotion throughout the life span (8th ed., p. Chapter 11). Missouri: Elseiver.
Nutrition and Overweight: Chapter 19. (2017). www.cdc.gov. Retrieved 19 January 2017, from https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hpdata2010/hp2010_final_review_focus_area_19.pdf
Nutrition and Weight Status | Healthy People 2020. (2017). Healthypeople.gov. Retrieved 19 January 2017, from https://www.healthypeople.gov/2020/topics- objectives/topic/nutrition-and-weight-status
