Andrea Metcalf: 5 Things You Should Do Every Morning
How Exercise Can Lower Your Risk of Alzheimer's Death
The Missing Element in the Health Care Debate
Posted on Dec 21st 2009 11:00AM by Jonny BowdenFiled Under: Diet & Weight Loss
Want to know what's wrong with the health care debate?
There isn't enough talk about ways get healthy and stay that way.
I try to keep my political views out of this blog so don't worry -- this isn't going to be about where I stand on various health bills now being debated. Instead, it's going to be about something else -- something I think virtually all of us can agree on.
Some common ground, if you will.
Even in the "diet wars" when we had Atkins on one side and Ornish on the other, it was still possible to find some common ground. Example: Both Atkins and Ornish believed sugar was really bad and both believed vegetables were really good. At least that's a start!
So here's the common ground in the health care debate, the thing I think we can all agree on and that nobody's talking about:
It's a really good idea to stay out of the medical system.
Think about it: what if you never (or almost never) had to go to the doctor? What if you never saw the inside of a hospital? What if the number of prescription medications you were taking was, let's see, none? What if you didn't need that cholesterol-lowering medication because you weren't at risk for heart disease in the first place?
What if you never got sick?
OK maybe that's a bit utopian. But it's a nice place to aim for.
My tennis teacher always says that when you hit the ball, you need to have a target. You may not always hit it, but if you aim for it, you've got a much better chance of at least getting the ball in the court. Maybe we can't have perfect, doctor-free, drug-free health at all times in our lives. But if that was our "Bulls Eye" we'd probably be a lot better off than we are now.
One of the findings I'm most fond of quoting in seminars and workshops is from the long-running Nurses Health Study. Researchers at Harvard, following over 100,000 women for over 30 years found that five simple behaviors or lifestyle choices could reduce heart disease by 83 percent. (Remember, there isn't a drug on the planet that can do that.)
The five behaviors?
1) Don't smoke
2) Maintain a healthy body weight
3) Eat a Mediterranean type diet (i.e. more fish, vegetables, nuts, beans, fruits, omega-3's)
4) If you drink, drink moderately
5) Exercise every day (or at least 5 times a week)
To that I'd add my own 9 recommendations:
1) Spend time with friends and/or family
2) Give back
3) Find a way to lower stress
4) Spend time outdoors
5) Sleep well
6) Get some sun
7) Take high-quality supplements (like the brands I recommend on Jonny Bowden Solutions)
8) Spend time with animals
9) Love
Maybe we can't always hit that "bulls eye" and do everything on that list -- but it sure is a great place to aim for.
There isn't enough talk about ways get healthy and stay that way.
I try to keep my political views out of this blog so don't worry -- this isn't going to be about where I stand on various health bills now being debated. Instead, it's going to be about something else -- something I think virtually all of us can agree on.
Some common ground, if you will.
Even in the "diet wars" when we had Atkins on one side and Ornish on the other, it was still possible to find some common ground. Example: Both Atkins and Ornish believed sugar was really bad and both believed vegetables were really good. At least that's a start!
So here's the common ground in the health care debate, the thing I think we can all agree on and that nobody's talking about:
It's a really good idea to stay out of the medical system.
Think about it: what if you never (or almost never) had to go to the doctor? What if you never saw the inside of a hospital? What if the number of prescription medications you were taking was, let's see, none? What if you didn't need that cholesterol-lowering medication because you weren't at risk for heart disease in the first place?
What if you never got sick?
OK maybe that's a bit utopian. But it's a nice place to aim for.
My tennis teacher always says that when you hit the ball, you need to have a target. You may not always hit it, but if you aim for it, you've got a much better chance of at least getting the ball in the court. Maybe we can't have perfect, doctor-free, drug-free health at all times in our lives. But if that was our "Bulls Eye" we'd probably be a lot better off than we are now.
One of the findings I'm most fond of quoting in seminars and workshops is from the long-running Nurses Health Study. Researchers at Harvard, following over 100,000 women for over 30 years found that five simple behaviors or lifestyle choices could reduce heart disease by 83 percent. (Remember, there isn't a drug on the planet that can do that.)
The five behaviors?
1) Don't smoke
2) Maintain a healthy body weight
3) Eat a Mediterranean type diet (i.e. more fish, vegetables, nuts, beans, fruits, omega-3's)
4) If you drink, drink moderately
5) Exercise every day (or at least 5 times a week)
To that I'd add my own 9 recommendations:
1) Spend time with friends and/or family
2) Give back
3) Find a way to lower stress
4) Spend time outdoors
5) Sleep well
6) Get some sun
7) Take high-quality supplements (like the brands I recommend on Jonny Bowden Solutions)
8) Spend time with animals
9) Love
Maybe we can't always hit that "bulls eye" and do everything on that list -- but it sure is a great place to aim for.
