Promote health and reduce chronic disease associated with diet and weight.
Nutrition is essential for growth and development, health, and well-being.
Behaviors to promote health should start early in life with breastfeeding and continue through life with the development of healthful eating habits. Nutritional, or dietary, factors contribute substantially to the burden of preventable illnesses and premature deaths in the United States. Dietary factors also are associated with osteoporosis, which affects more than 25 million persons in the United States and is the major underlying cause of bone fractures in postmenopausal women and elderly persons. Recommended Objectives 19-2. Reduce the proportion of adults who are obese.