Health Tips for Adults
Introduction
This publication is part of the Healthy Eating & Physical Activity Across Your Lifespan Series from the Weight-control Information Network (WIN). The series offers health tips for readers at various life stages, including adulthood, pregnancy, parenthood, and later life. The entire series is also available in Spanish.How can I use this publication?
This publication is one of many handy guides from WIN that can help you and your family. This publication gives you tips on how to eat better and be more active.Eating healthy foods and doing physical activity on a regular basis may help you reach and maintain a healthy weight. They may also help prevent some health problems.
Start taking steps now to move more and eat better—for yourself and your family!
Healthy Weight
More than two-thirds of American adults are considered overweight or obese. Excess weight may lead to heart disease and diabetes. Creating and following plans for healthy eating and physical activity may help you improve your health.What is a healthy weight?
Body mass index (BMI) is one way to tell whether you are at a healthy weight, overweight, or obese. It measures your weight in relation to your height.A BMI of 18.5 to 24.9 is in the healthy range. A person with a BMI of 25 to 29.9 is considered overweight, and someone with a BMI of 30 or greater is considered obese.
Go to the tip sheet to find a BMI table you can use to find your BMI score. You may also check the Additional Links section section for a link to an online tool for measuring BMI.
Another way to find out if you are at risk for health problems caused by overweight and obesity is to measure your waist. If you are a woman and your waist is more than 35 inches, or if you are a man and your waist is more than 40 inches, your risk of disease may be higher.
What are the health risks of being overweight or obese?
Extra weight may increase your risk for- type 2 diabetes
- heart disease and stroke
- high blood cholesterol
- high blood pressure
- kidney disease
- non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (a fat buildup in the livers of people who drink little or no alcohol)
- problems with pregnancy (see box)
- certain cancers
Extra weight can cause these health problems with pregnancy:
- gestational diabetes (high blood sugar during pregnancy)
- high blood pressure
- increased risk for cesarean section (C-section)
Why do people become overweight?
Over time, if you eat and drink more calories than your body uses or "burns off," your body may store the extra energy, leading to weight gain. Many factors may play a part in weight gain.The World around You
Communities, homes, and workplaces can all affect people's health decisions. Foods high in fat, added sugar, and calories are easy to find. They also often cost less than healthier choices like fruits and vegetables. Also, many people lack access to safe places where they can be physically active. On top of that, many tools and devices, like remote controls and drive-in banks, make it easy to be inactive.
Families
Overweight and obesity tend to run in families. Research shows that genes can play a role in obesity. Families also share eating habits that can affect how, when, and what we eat.
Some medicines, such as steroids (drugs used to reduce swelling) and some drugs for depression and other psychiatric disorders, may lead to weight gain. Ask your health care provider or pharmacist about the side effects of any medicines you are taking.
Emotions
Many people eat when they are bored, sad, angry, or stressed, even when they are not hungry.
Although you may not be able to control all the factors that lead to overweight, making small changes to your eating and physical activity habits may improve your health.