Preventing obesity in Adults
Many of the strategies that produce successful weight loss and maintenance help prevent obesity. Improving eating habits and increasing physical activity play a vital role in preventing obesity. Recommendations for adults include:
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Eat five to nine servings of fruitsand vegetables daily. A vegetable serving is one cup of raw vegetables or one-half cup of cooked vegetables or vegetable juice. A fruit serving is one piece of small to medium fresh fruit, one-half cup of canned or fresh fruit or fruit juice, or one-fourth cup of dried fruit.
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Choose whole grain foods, such as brown rice and whole wheat bread. Avoid highly processed foods made with refined white sugar, flour, and saturated fat.
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**Choose whole grain foods, such as brown rice and whole wheat bread. Avoid highly processed foods made with refined white sugar, flour, and saturated fat.
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Weigh and measure food in order to be able to gain an understanding of portion sizes. For example, a 3-ounce serving ofmeat is the size of a deck of cards. Avoid supersized menu items.
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Balance the food "checkbook." Taking in more calories than are expended for energy will result inweight gain. Regularly monitor weight.
** Avoid foods that are high in"energy density," or that have a lot of calories in a small amount of food. For example, a large cheeseburger with a large order of fries may have almost 1,000 calories and 30 or more grams of fat. By ordering a grilled chicken sandwich or a plain hamburger and a small salad with low-fat dressing, you can avoid hundredsof calories and eliminate much ofthe fat intake. For dessert, have fruit or a piece of angel food cakerather than the "death by chocolate" special or three piecesof homemade pie.
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Remember that much may be achieved with proper choices in serving sizes.
** Accumulate at least 30 minutes or more of moderate-intensity activity on most, or preferably all,days of the week. Examples of moderate intensity exercise are walking a 15-minute mile, or weeding and hoeing a garden.
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Look for opportunities during the day to perform even 10 or 15 minutes of some type of activity, such as walking around the blockor up and down a few flights of stairs.
