Nutrition and Physical Activity

Why Should You be Physically Active?

Living an active lifestyle helps to:

• Control weight
• Lower your risk of getting heart disease, colon cancer, stroke, high blood pressure, and diabetes.
• Keeps your bones, muscles, and joints healthy, controlling joint swelling and pain from arthritis
• Gives you more energy
• Handle stress
• Protect against falling and bone fractures in older adults

Recommended Activity

• At least 30 minutes of moderate physical activity on most days of the week is the recommended minimum.
• Physical activity may also include short bouts of moderate-intensity activity.
• Physical activity can be accumulated through six 10-minute bouts over the course of the day.

Easy Ways to Become More Active

• Take the stairs instead of the elevator
• Drop the phone and walk to a co-worker’s desk
• Park further away from the store
• Plan family outings and vacations that include physical activity (hiking, biking, backpacking, swimming)
• Do sit-ups or push-ups as you watch TV
• Visit City Parks and take part in recreational activities

City of Bethlehem PArks

Visit the CDC's Web site to calculate your Body Mass Index (BMI)

INSIDE THE New Food Guide Pyramid

• Eat at least 3 ounces of whole grain bread, cereal, crackers, rice, or pasta everyday.
• Look for “whole” before the grain name on the list of ingredients.
• Eat more dark green veggies
• Eat more orange veggies
• Eat a variety of fruit
• Choose fresh, frozen, canned, or dried fruit
• Go easy on fruit juices
• Make most of your fat sources from fish, nuts, and vegetable oils
• Limit solid fats like butter, stick margarine, shortening, and lard
• Go low fat or fat free when you choose milk, yogurt, and other milk products.
• Choose low- fat or lean meats and poultry
• Bake it, broil it, or grill it
• Vary your choices-with more fish, beans, peas, nuts and seeds
  

For more information go to the USDA's http://www.mypyramid.gov/

For programs please call the Bethlehem Health Bureau 610.865.7087 x 3562