An Ounce of Prevention
- Created inNewsletter Library,Breaking Bad Habits
Everyone knows the old adage that declares “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” This time-honored wisdom certainly makes sense. We wouldn’t wait until we were riding on the wheel rim before we repaired a leaking automobile tire. We wouldn’t wait until there were obvious signs of termite damage to our home before calling in the pest control experts. But, in contrast, many of us fail to implement the same kinds of straightforward preventive measures to help ensure appropriate levels of physical fitness and ongoing good health.
The main problem with preventive measures is that they consume time. The adage, however, implies that much more time will be spent, as well as financial resources that could be better directed toward other projects, in trying to cure damage, illness, or disease that would likely have been prevented by consistently taking a few necessary steps. In the case of achieving wellness, most people are aware of the need for good nutrition and regular exercise. But even with this awareness, many people persist in avoiding taking the time to do the things they need to do to retain and maintain robust good health.
What is missing is the commitment to be the person who accomplishes such goals. Change comes from within, as is asserted by another well-known aphorism. In order to take on meaningful change, despite the implication that there is going to be a certain expenditure of time and some inconvenience, the value of the activity needs to outweigh the costs. This means a person needs to be willing to authentically choose to take long-term actions in the areas of healthy eating and exercise. Sometimes it takes a wake-up call to get going, but it’s much better, in the context of “an ounce of prevention,” to start to make things happen before a real problem develops.
Many people will persist in their habits and resist the self-creation of more healthy lifestyles, as demonstrated by the ongoing worldwide epidemics of obesity and type 2 diabetes. But many others will one day get out of bed in the morning and experience the sensation of being sick and tired of being sick and tired. On that day, such a person will have the immediate realization of the great value to be obtained in taking care of oneself, despite the short-term costs of time and effort. These “aha moments” are the inspiration for many to adopt and maintain a range of healthy lifestyles, with the result of long-term health, happiness, and well-being.
Regular Chiropractic Care and Healthy Lifestyles
Another well-worn yet still meaningful adage is “If it’s going to be, it’s up to me.” Although friends may tell us what they think we should do, and loved ones may attempt to instruct us in hopes of bettering our welfare, most of us have a fairly ingrained resistance to following the recommendations of others if those recommendations didn’t match up with our own already developed plans.
It may be that many friends and loved ones have recommended regular chiropractic care to us over months or even years, with the intention of helping us obtain better overall health. When the time comes when we begin to realize how valuable good health actually is, we will discover for ourselves the value and importance of regular chiropractic care. We will then want to sure that we’re getting the most out of our good nutritional practices and the time spent engaging in regular exercise, and we will find that regular chiropractic care helps us do so. By detecting and correcting spinal misalignments and optimizing functioning of the nerve system, our body’s master system, regular chiropractic care helps us achieve our goals of long-term health and wellness.
- Kang DW, Lee J, Suh SH, et al: Effects of Exercise on Insulin, IGF-axis, Adipocytokines, and Inflammatory Markers in Breast Cancer Survivors: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 26(3):355-365, 2016
- Hayes BD, Brady L, Pollak M, et al: Exercise and Prostate Cancer: Evidence and Proposed Mechanisms for Disease Modification Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 25(9):1281-1288, 2016
- Micha R, Peñalvo JL, Cudhea F, et al: Association Between Dietary Factors and Mortality from Heart Disease, Stroke, and Type 2 Diabetes in the United States JAMA 317(9):912-924, 2017 Reflex sympathetic dystrophy (CRPS) (ICD9 337.2):26 visits over 16 weeks Arthritis (ICD9 715): 9 visits over 8 weeks
