overview of nutrition

Essential Elements to Prevent Chronic Diseases and Obesity: At A Glance 2007

Chronic diseases accounted for 5 of the leading 6 causes of death in 2002 in the United States. The prolonged illness and disability associated with many chronic diseases also decreases the quality of life for millions of Americans. Much of the chronic disease burden is preventable. Physical inactivity and unhealthy eating contribute to obesity and a number of chronic diseases, including some cancers, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes.

The Obesity Epidemic

In the past 30 years, the prevalence of overweight and obesity has increased sharply for both adults and children. Between 1976–1980 and 2003–2004, the prevalence of obesity among adults aged 20–74 years increased from 15.0% to 32.9%. Among young people, the prevalence of overweight increased from 5.0% to 13.9% for those aged 2–5 years, 6.5% to 18.8% for those aged 6–11 years, and 5.0% to 17.4% for those aged 12–19 years.

People who are obese are at increased risk for heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, arthritis-related disabilities, and some cancers. The estimated total cost of obesity in the United States in 2000 was about $117 billion.

Promoting regular physical activity and healthy eating and creating an environment that supports these behaviors are essential to addressing the problem.

Lack of Physical Activity

Regular physical activity reduces people’s 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 older adults; helps to relieve the pain of arthritis; reduces symptoms of anxiety and depression; and is associated with fewer hospitalizations, physician visits, and medications. Physical activity can also help people avoid developing functional limitations, can improve physical function, and can provide therapeutic benefits for people with heart disease, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, osteoporosis, arthritis, lung disease, and other chronic diseases. Moreover, physical activity need not be strenuous to be beneficial. For example, adults of all ages benefit from moderate-intensity physical activity, such as 30 minutes of brisk walking most days of the week.

Despite the proven benefits of physical activity, more than 50% of U.S. adults do not get enough physical activity to provide health benefits; 24% 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. About two-thirds of young people in grades 9–12 are not engaged in recommended levels of physical activity. Daily participation in high school physical education classes dropped from 42% in 1991 to 33% in 2005.

The Critical Role of Good Nutrition

Research shows that good nutrition can help to lower people’s risk for many chronic diseases, including heart disease, stroke, some cancers, diabetes, and osteoporosis. However, a large gap remains between healthy dietary patterns and what Americans actually eat. In 2005, only one-fourth of U.S. adults ate five or more servings of fruits and vegetables each day. To help people improve their eating habits, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the U.S. Department of Agriculture publish Dietary Guidelines for Americans (available online at http://www.healthierus.gov/dietaryguidelines).

Good nutrition begins in infancy. Children who were not breastfed are at increased risk for overweight, asthma, and some childhood infections. Of concern for both children and adults, particularly in underdeveloped countries, is micronutrient malnutrition, which can negatively affect survival and growth for children, health and pregnancy outcomes for women, and resistance to illness for both.

CDC's National Leadership

CDC is committed to ensuring that all people, especially those at greater risk for health disparities, will achieve their optimal lifespan with the best possible quality of health in every stage of life. With new health protection goals that support healthy people in healthy places across all life stages, CDC is setting the agenda to enable people to enjoy a healthy life by delaying death and the onset of illness and disability by accelerating improvements in public health.

With fiscal year (FY) 2006 funding of $37 million, CDC’s Division of Nutrition and Physical Activity has worked to reduce chronic diseases and obesity through state programs, research, surveillance, training, intervention development and evaluation, leadership, policy and environmental change, communication and social marketing, and partnership development.

The Nutrition and Physical Activity Program to Prevent Obesity and Other Chronic Diseases funds obesity prevention and control activities in 28 states. These efforts include making policy and environmental changes to encourage access to healthy foods and places to be active, and strengthening obesity prevention and control programs in preschools, child care centers, work sites, and many other community settings. All funded states will continue to evaluate their interventions to determine their effectiveness and to guide future efforts.

In 2005, CDC became the lead federal agency and national health authority for the National Fruit and Vegetable Program. Through this program, CDC encourages Americans to eat fruits and vegetables every day. CDC also provides technical assistance, materials, training, and partnership opportunities to states to help them develop comprehensive programs aimed at increasing fruit and vegetable consumption.

Last Updated March 2007

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–24,
4770 Buford Highway NE,
Atlanta GA 30341-3717,
Telephone (800) 232-4636; ccdinfo@cdc.gov