Preventable or inevitable? Disease or Life Sentence?

 Preventable or Inevitable?

Disease or Life Sentence?


    When I started my journey into health care as a certified nursing assistant, I began in a skilled nursing facility which was state funded and essentially became a dumping ground for people to spend their last years on earth. It was a sad sad place. Understaffed, underfunded and full of people who were once full of life, laughter and purpose. It was almost too much to see this happening and perform my duties with dignity and respect under these conditions. 

    I noticed one thing that really stuck with me, how can the man in room 101 be 62 and barely able to function while his neighbor was 98 and still managing bingo every week? As I learned in nursing school to go through patient's history and understand the function of each medication I started to piece together that many of these things are in fact preventable and were caused by a hard/unhealthy life. I would see the calluses on the hands of those who worked construction or scars on legs from those who worked outdoors. I saw lung damage, poor circulation, organ disfunction from excess sugar and even cancers caused by environmental aspects. The leathery skin of a 48 year old whose eyes have now turned yellow from many years of alcohol abuse or a 36 year old who has only 1 kidney left from kidney failure would be examples of such in the emergency room. 

    Is all of this preventable? The answer to that is no. There are multiple aspects that we take in consideration such as family history, lack of education, lack of resources and lots of factors we haven't even discovered yet in medicine. That is why we call it practicing. We are still learning and discovering new things everyday. Whether it's preventable or not, it's still the responsibility of the person to work on the next steps beyond diagnosis. We once again look at the resources and education level of the individual at hand. There's no doubt that those who have additional cash flow can afford alternative health care practices and have all the care they can get. But one thing that is free and accessible to everyone is a healthy mindset through it all. Those who have a positive outlook on their prognosis have shown a better experience overall. 

    So what is the point of all this? It's certainly never to shame or guilt anyone for what they are going through. Each person gets treated well no matter how they got to this point. But if we don't take a look at these cases to share with the future generation then we will end up going around in circles forever. It is all of our responsibility to show the upcoming younger generations how to take care of our bodies and learn how to prevent things like diabetes, high cholesterol and other things. Here's a few quick tips to keep in mind for healthy living: 

  • Eat a low sugar diet and eat fewer processed foods.
  • Limit your processed meat consumption like pork which is known to cause colon cancer.
  • Focus on fats directly from fruits and vegetables like avocado and coconuts and pull back on fats from oils and dairy. 
  • Eat the rainbow and consume whole foods as often as you can. 
  • Drink plenty of water.
  • Move your body daily and get your heart rate up at least 3 times a week for about 45 minutes. 
  • Take high quality vitamins and supplement when you cannot fit something into your diet. 
  • Lower stress in all areas of your life. When you cannot remove it, take time to focus on peace, calm and activities that center you. 
  • Avoid toxins such as tobacco, drugs, excess alcohol and pollution. 
  • Wear sun protection and take care of your skin. 
    If you have a family history of any of the following, talk to your doctor and do your research on what you can do to work on prevention and if something comes up for you, you are able to handle it the best as you can for a manageable experience and speedy recovery. 

Diabetes, hypercholesterolemia, hypertension, cancer, heart disease, pulmonary diseases, autoimmune diseases, mental health disorders, GI tract dysfunction, vascular diseases, addictions such as alcoholism or drug abuse and many more. 

    For more information on nutrition related to these check out the book "How not to Die" by Dr. Michael Greger. And remember to always talk to a medical professional if you are concerned in anyway. Research any product you are thinking about using and ensure it aligns with your overall health goals. 

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