Healthy People 2020 leading health indicators

Healthy People 2020; Nutrition, Physical Activity and Obesity

The Healthy People 2020 initiative looks at a n umber of different health issues which face the American population and sets out some goals for improving the current health status of the nation. One of the topics is nutrition, physical activity and obesity.

The consumption of a healthy diet and a sufficient level of activity are for the maintenance of a healthy weight. A major issue in the use is an increasingly level of obesity; with problems leading this is a failure including the consumption of excessive calories, high intakes of saturated and trans fats as well as high intakes of other unhealthy inputs such as sugar, cholesterol, salt and alcohol (Healthy People, 2012). This is further aggravated by lower levels of physical activity to burn off the calories consumed, which leads to the body storing the energy and weight gain taking place.

The current statistics indicate there is a significant problem, according to the Healthy People 2020 document it is estimated that less than a third of adults eat the recommended level of fruit and vegetables, with the figures for adolescents being even less. Furthermore 81.6% of adults and 81.8% of adolescents do not undertake the recommended levels of physical activity (Healthy People, 2012). This has lead to a position where 34% of adults and 16.2% of adolescents are obese (Healthy People, 2012).However, this is not evenly distributed across the entire U.S. population; some states appear to have a greater problem that others. According to the CDC the state with the highest level of obesity in the population was Mississippi with an overall prevalence of 34%, even the state with the lowest level of obesity; Colorado had a rate of 21% (CDC, 2012).

The problem with obesity is the way ion which it impacts on health, increasing risks for a number of conditions, including but not limited to high blood pressure, cardiac disease, type 2 diabetes, osteoarthritis and some cancers. In 2001 it was estimated that there were 300,000 deaths in the U.S. each year as a direct result of obesity (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2001). The financial cost is also high, it is estimated that the annual cost of obesity to the U.S. is $147 billion a year, with the healthcare costs for an obese person being 43% higher than a healthy weight person (Paddock, 2009).

There are a number of influences on the way nutrition and exercise take place and the occurrence of obesity. The environment is a key factor; increased development and sales of fatty and high sugar foods which are easy to buy increasing the overall calorific intake. For this reason many schools have stopped selling high sugar goods in their vending machines. Behavior is also an influence, increased use of computers and sedentarily lifestyles has reduced the amount of exercise taken has reduce the amount of calories burned which further increased the potential for weight gain to take place. It may also be argued that social interaction can have an impact, with individuals likely to emulate the behavior of their social group norms; those who are in groups that visit gymnasiums regularly are less likely to gain weight compared to those who go out drinking consuming alcohol. It has also been discovered there is a genetic link, with some individuals having a greater potential predisposition to weight gain (Faith et al., 2006)