If your patients are at all typical of the general U.S. adult population – at least when they first set foot in your office, technically not yet under your care – this is what you are seeing every day, and it's not always pretty picture in terms of their overall health and wellness:
- Thirty percent are obese (almost 35 percent of 45-60-year-olds).1
- Almost 10 percent are diabetic; more than 20 percent of those ages 65 and older.2
- Half are involved in some level of aerobic activity, but this number declines with age to about 25 percent of those 75 and older.3
- Only one in five (about 20 percent) include muscle-strengthening activities in addition to aerobics; this too declines with age to less than 10 percent.3
- Approximately 15 percent are current smokers.4
In 1997, 68.5 percent of the adult population believed they had "excellent or very good health." Today, 66.1 percent of adults believe the same thing.5 The difference is that over the same period of time, the incidence of obesity has increased by 50 percent, the incidence of diabetes has almost doubled, and we have seen only a marginal (12 percent) increase in aerobic activity. Add to this the fact that on any day, one-third of the population eats fast food.6
Given this obviously unhealthy progression, how do almost two-thirds of adults still believe they have "excellent or very good health?"
If you look at where they are now, many of your patients have come to define their "good health" by progressively deteriorating standards. They are accepting excess weight gain, poor diet and the accompanying chronic diseases as a normal part of the aging process. They also are likely accepting the "necessity" of taking an ever-increasing list of drugs to help them "stay healthy" as they get older.
As the only health care provider who can see through this unhealthy self-deception, you have an obligation to be honest with each patient about their health. Chiropractic care goes a long way toward promoting wellness, but it can't completely overcome lack of fitness. Added pounds, loss of muscle tone and systemic inflammation will be the tyrants that bring on disease and a greater dependence on drugs.
Among the definitions of the word doctor is: "a learned or authoritative teacher." Teaching wellness is just as important as providing chiropractic care. This is especially true as your patients get older.
As they age, patients enter new chapters of their lives in which they find it harder to exercise and easier to be more sedentary. As they do less, it becomes harder to do more. Eventually, their quality of life is dictated by the drugs they take, rather than the healthy activities they should be pursuing.
As you see each patient this week, consider what their optimal health should look like. Ask them what they are doing to maintain their fitness. Inquire about their diet. Help them realize that by doing more, they could be much healthier and raise their quality of life.
It doesn't take much effort to help them redirect their future. You just have to unmask those unhealthy self-deceptions.
References
- Early Release of Selected Estimates Based on Data From the 2015 National Health Interview Survey – Obesity. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics. Released 05/16.
- Early Release of Selected Estimates Based on Data From the 2015 National Health Interview Survey – Diagnosed Diabetes. Released 05/16.
- Early Release of Selected Estimates Based on Data From the 2015 National Health Interview Survey – Leisure-Time Physical Activity. Released 05/16.
- Early Release of Selected Estimates Based on Data From the 2015 National Health Interview Survey – Current Smoking. Released 05/16.
- Early Release of Selected Estimates Based on Data From the 2015 National Health Interview Survey – General Health Status. Released 05/16.
- Zota AR, Phillips CA, Mitro SD. Recent fast food consumption and bisphenol A and phthalates exposures among the U.S. population in NHANES, 2003–2010. Environ Health Perspect; advance publication April 13, 2016.
Read more findings on my blog: http://blog.toyourhealth.com/wrblog/. You can also visit me on Facebook.
Click here for more information about Donald M. Petersen Jr., BS, HCD(hc), FICC(h), Publisher.