5 Reasons Why Maintaining a Healthy Weight is Important for Your Health

You should talk with your doctor about your weight. They can tell you if you’re in a healthy range or if you need to gain or lose weight. In general, the body mass index (BMI) for an adult should be between 18.5 and 24.9. 

You should aim to maintain a healthy weight to:​

• ​Help Your Joints. Just 10 extra pounds add 30 to 60 pounds of extra pressure on your knees and other lower body joints. Losing even a little weight can help. If you keep the weight off, you're less likely to get osteoarthritis (a joint disease that causes tissue in the joint to break down) or other joint issues later in life. And if you already have osteoarthritis, losing 10 pounds and keeping it off can reduce the progression of the disease by 50%.
• Prevent or Put-Off Diabetes. Weight loss and exercise are ways you can try to prevent or delay getting diabetes. If you already have diabetes, losing weight helps in other ways. It can help you keep control of your blood sugar and take less medication. It can also cut the chances that diabetes will cause other health problems.
• Lower Your Blood Pressure. Extra weight means your blood pushes harder against your artery walls, making your heart work harder. Trimming 5% of your weight can lower your blood pressure. Cutting your salt intake can help, too.
• Avoid Developing Chronic Conditions. Your weight directly affects your risk level for developing conditions like heart disease, respiratory disease and certain cancers.
• Lower Your Chance of Fertility Issues. Women who are overweight, obese or underweight may have issues conceiving caused by ovulatory infertility (not ovulating or irregular ovulation). Your weight can also affect your pregnancy. Obese women are at a higher risk of miscarriage, gestational diabetes, preeclampsia and other complications. 

Tips for Weight Management

• Make a realistic plan and start with small changes. Look at what you eat and how much physical activity you get. Improving those habits can be a key to weight loss.
• Plan for Success
• Set realistic goals. Plan to do it slowly, over time. Try for a pound a week.
• Add 10 minutes of activity to your day. Even some physical activity is better than none. You can add more as you go.
• Ask your doctor for help.
• Eat to Lose
  • Aim to eat at least four servings of vegetables and three servings of fruits each day.
  • Choose whole grains, not refined grains.
  • Add small amounts of healthy fats like olive oil, avocados, nuts, and nut butters.
  • Cut back on sugar and avoid high-fructose corn syrup. Natural sugar in fruit is okay. If you use sugar substitutes, consider natural alternatives such as stevia or monk fruit.
  • Choose fermented dairy (such as natural cheese, unsweetened yogurt or kefir) instead of nonfermented dairy (milk and butter).
  • Pick lean meat and poultry and avoid processed meats like ham, hot dogs and deli meat that may increase your risk of certain cancers.
  • Eat more fish. Look for sustainably wild-caught or ethically farm-raised.
  • Watch your portions and skip second helpings. You can still have foods you like if you have them in moderation.
  • Choose healthier versions of your favorite foods. Look for ones with fewer calories and less added sugar and salt.
  • Once you get started, strive to keep going. Lose more if you need to or build on your weight loss by adding other healthy habits.