This is a most important subject for me, so I like to be thorough. Before writing this article I wanted to know exactly how "prevention" is defined. My Webster Dictionary tells me this: "'prevention' is to keep something from happening, or to make something impossible to happen by prior action." That's pretty forthcoming and suggests that pro-action is required to achieve a desired result.
With that in mind, let's talk about prevention in the arena of health and wellness. That's my passion and that's what I want to communicate to you. The question you may ask is "you mean I can prevent, say, osteoporosis, heart disease, cancer or any other ailment in spite of the fact that we live in a polluted environment and often practice unhealthy eating habits?"
The answer lies in your understanding of how our bodies work and in your motivation to be proactive in maintaining your health. Think about this: what would you like better, checking into the best and plushest hospital to be treated for a disease, or walk the beaches of this world and play with your grandchildren and loved ones? If you choose the way I do, the answer is yes, you can; you can act now to prevent damage later! Qualifying that, I would have to admit there are no guarantees, but you definitely can reduce your risks considerably!
You no doubt have heard the saying that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Many a sick person would attest to that and wish they had exercised their responsibility and taken better care of their health before disease manifested.
When, then, is the best time to focus on prevention? Anytime is a good time, but the earlier, the better. Starting in the womb would be ideal, but for most of us it's too late for that now. Actually, the best time is when you are well, active and feeling just fine. That's when you are probably least inspired to be thinking about your health. Yet, when you understand the 4 phases of the disease progression, the logic of it will be evident.
* In phase #1 the disease process begins silently in your body while you don't notice, say, the arteriosclerotic build-up that can later lead to heart attack or stroke, or the cancer cells that are replicating with the wrong DNA formula.
* During phase #2 the disease can be diagnosed if your doctor is looking for it; whereas in
* phase #3 you may begin to feel the symptoms of a disease. Up to then you may have thought yourself to be healthy, because you felt fine. By the time you feel the symptoms, it's already too late for prevention; then you need to focus on treatment, and that's much harder to do.
* Finally in phase 4 the disease is severe and potentially fatal.
Get the picture?
How hard is prevention? Well, that depends on you - how hard do you want to make it? There are many things you can do and some things you better forget about. You pretty much know the drill: smoking is out, heavy drinking you better forget about as well. Much is written about how you can improve your lifestyle to support prevention of unwanted disease. You pretty much know about nutrition which includes thoughtful nutritional supplementation, of course, but also how you deal with stress, the quality of sleep you are getting, your exercise, your emotional outlook on life.
This and many other aspects matter. Again, life doesn't give us guarantees, but if you set your mind on prevention NOW, chances are very good that you end up on the playgrounds of your Golden Years with your grandchildren or your golf buddies instead of some fine hospital.
