An ounce of prevention…for your health

Add comment January 25th, 2008

  Brian J. Knabe, MD 

As a family physician, I often give advice to patients regarding wellness and disease prevention.  The article in the following link illustrates some of this type of advice:

http://health.msn.com/health-topics/articlepage.aspx?cp-documentid=100174651&page=1

Hey, it’s not the New England Journal of Medicine, but much of the content is common sense and sound from a medical standpoint.  The most striking aspect of the article, in fact, is the common sense and simple nature of most of the points – drink more water, exercise regularly, and don’t skip breakfast!  Another good point made by this article is the statistics that are quoted – “decrease your risk of stroke by 50 percent”, “reduce… depression by 71 percent”.  Do you realize that many of us pay over $100 per month (or a $35 co-pay, if you have insurance) for a drug that may not offer this same level of benefits?  Indeed, many diseases can be prevented or treated by relatively simple lifestyle changes.  Ask your doctor which preventive measures would give you the most benefit – then act on the advice!