The U.S. Surgeon General has issued calls for a nationwide health improvement program since 1979.

The latest edition of this report, Healthy People 2020, contains a set of health goals and objectives for the nation to achieve over the second decade of the twenty-first century.

Healthy People 2020 focuses on several overarching goals:

  • Attain high-quality, longer lives free of preventable disease, disability, injury, and premature death.
  • Achieve health equity, eliminate disparities, and improve the health of all groups.
  • Create social and physical environments that promote good health for all.
  • Promote quality of life, healthy development, and healthy behaviors across every stage of life.

There are more than 35 topic areas in Healthy People 2020, ranging from ensuring that Americans have adequate access to health services to improvements in their diets and physical activity. Objectives are developed within each topic area.

For example, current research indicates that Americans body weights are increasing rather than decreasing. Thus, “Nutrition and Weight Status” is one topic area. Its goal is to promote health and reduce chronic diseases associated with diet and weight.

There are numerous objectives developed within this topic area that, if fulfilled, will help Americans improve their diet and reduce their weight.

Consuming adequate amounts of fruits and vegetables are beneficial to managing one’s weight.

Americans should increase their intake of both of these food sources to help them improve their nutrition and weight status.

Europeans and citizens of other developed countries have the same problems.

This isn’t exactly what’s meant by the phrase “You are what you eat,” but its close.

Terms:

Obesity: Carrying an excessive amount of body fat above the level of being overweight.

Overweight: Carrying extra weight on your body in relation to your height.

Healthy People 2020: A set of disease prevention and health promotion objectives for Americans to meet during the second decade of the new millennium.

Healthy People 2020 Nutrition and Weight

Objectives:

  • Increase the proportion of adults who are at a healthy weight
  • Reduce the proportion of adults who are obese
  • Reduce the proportion of children and adolescents who are considered obese
  • Increase the contribution of fruits to diets of the population age 2 years and older
  • Increase the variety and contribution of vegetables to the diets of the population aged 2 and older

The Take-Home Message:

Incidences of overweight and obesity among Americans are prevalent, yet many people are falling short of some nutrient needs. Healthy  People  2020 is  a  set  of  health  objectives  for  the nation to achieve over the second decade of the twenty-first century.