Fact sheets from the Surgeon General's Call to Action to Prevent and Decrease Overweight and Obesity.

Overweight and obesity have reached nationwide epidemic proportions. Both the prevention and treatment of overweight and obesity and their associated health problems are important public health goals. To achieve these goals, The Surgeon General's Call To Action To Prevent and Decrease Overweight and Obesity is committed to five overarching principles: • Promote the recognition of overweight and obesity as major public health problems. • Assist Americans in balancing healthful eating with regular physical activity to achieve and maintain a healthy or healthier body weight. • Identify effective and culturally appropriate interventions to prevent and treat overweight and obesity. • Encourage environmental changes that help prevent overweight and obesity. • Develop and enhance public-private partnerships to help implement this vision. Note: BFRSS uses self-reported height and weight to calculate obesity; self-reported data may underestimate obesity prevalence.