Increasing the amount of plant foods in the diet can help reduce several types of cancers and heart diseases. The current nutrition-related public health issues in the US according to an expert panel are food energy, fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, alcohol, iron, calcium, and sodium. About a quarter of the men in the US are overweight. The chance of developing health problems is greater for men who are too fat or too thin. Suggested weight ranges for adults, both men and women, derived from the RDA publication are given in Table III .
Individuals can be a little heavier as they grow older without adding risk to their health.
Men who are more active require more calories. The major cause of men being overweight is that more calories are eaten than the body needs. Exercise, which increases energy output, helps in weight loss programs. Obesity has been associated with several diseases including heart diseases, certain cancers, high blood pressure, stroke, hypertension, osteoarthritis, non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus, and gall bladder disease. Being too thin is linked with anorexia nervosa and a greater risk of early death.