In this episode of the podcast, we continue our discussion on foundational health management practices. Some of the things discussed in this episode are quite different from what most people think of when they think of health management. However, they do lead to better health in general.
Show notes:
Beyond the points previously discussed, there are many things you can look to as foundational health practices. There are obviously a million and one different things you could potentially look at, but we want to focus on high yield items first and foremost.
Don’t do drugs. This should be pretty self-explanatory. Unless your doctor has prescribed you the drugs, it is a pretty safe bet that they aren’t the type of drugs that are going to improve your life. While we can argue that some drugs should have looser regulation (i.e. should statins be over the counter?), and clearly heroin is not the same as testosterone which is not the same as LSD, etc., it is probably best that you don’t take drugs regularly.
Manage your heart disease risk. Manage your blood pressure and your blood lipids. We have discussed heart disease stuff before on the podcast, we will be discussing it again in the future, along with discussing screening/blood testing in general.
Family “screening” is an incredibly high yield health practice. While everyone likes to rush out and get genetic testing as if it is a panacea, in reality, our understanding of genetics is rudimentary at best. You are far better off getting the death certificates of your family members (especially those in your direct lineage), and seeing what they died of. That will give you a far better understanding of what your genetics are set up to put you at risk for. Now this isn’t foolproof as you have two parents, and their genes combine to make you, and the combination could result in something no one in your direct family has had issues with. However, understanding what diseases are in your family is a very simple (unless you are adopted) health practice that can really help you to understand how to better manage your health and your disease risk.
Similar to this, doing an environmental “screening” could be incredibly high yield for improving your health and preventing disease. What do people in your environment die from or get sick with? Are there specific diseases that are of higher prevalence in your area? There could be something in the air, water, rocks, etc. that is leading to that. If you are aware of this causative agent, then you can better protect yourself. For example, if you hang around with people that smoke, are you ok with the fact that breathing in second-hand smoke may be increasing your cancer risk?
But beyond this, what happens to people with your lifestyle? For example, you may be a night owl, are there health detriments associated with that?
What happens to people with your job? Do they generally live a long fulfilling life, or are they dropping dead in their early 40s due to stress? Are you ok with the health trade-off with exposing yourself to a carcinogen in your job (shift work, various chemicals, etc)?
What health issues occur for people within your socioeconomic status? There are diseases/illnesses/issues associated with every level of the socioeconomic ladder, but they are different. So knowing where you are on the ladder and thus what you are at higher risk of makes sense to know, so you can potentially mitigate any issues down the line.
15-34: Accidents, Suicide, Homicide
35-44: Accidents, Cancer, CVD
Specific practices for your health risks. If you have identified specific health risks in your family or environment, figuring out how best you can mitigate those things and then actually doing those things is an incredibly high yield health practice.
- We will also be doing a future podcast on the major killers of humans, so we will cover some stuff there that should help with this.
Going to the doctor when you are sick or when you feel something is wrong (especially for men), is such a basic health practice that most don’t do. If your country has a form of socialised medicine, you better get your value from it. If you aren’t happy with your doctor, then go to another one. So many women I have spoken to just accept that their GP doesn’t have the answers for their questions (especially around menstrual issues), and it really shouldn’t be that way. Find a doctor that will give you the service that you feel you deserve (there are caveats to this, especially if you think you deserve an antibiotic for a viral infection or that you need to go on TRT because you want to build muscle faster).
- We can potentially bring up screening/testing here.
- USPSTF for basic recommendations on screening.
Medication.
As fitness enthusiasts, we can be very hesitant to take the step of taking medication, but certain conditions lead to cumulative risk over decades. Therefore, the earlier you intervene, the better.
- Lipids/Cholesterol
- Hypertension
Go to the dentist. Much the same as the doctor, the dentist is a vital part of your foundational health practices.
- gum disease/plaques and heart disease
- you can’t chew food if your teeth fall out (especially relevant as you age)
Get adequate health insurance. This is such a no-brainer, yet so many people skip it. While socialised medicine has its benefits, when the rubber hits the road, you want to know you are adequately protected and can be seen to quickly. Insurance facilitates this. Finding the right insurance coverage is tricky, as you basically have to guess what issues you are going to have in future, but if you do the family and environment screening, this will become easier. You don’t want to be waiting for months to get a basic scan or surgery, when you could have had it sorted privately much quicker.
Know your rights and entitlements in your country regarding health. Another foundational health practice that is often just ignored. The amount of people that simply don’t know what they are entitled to is staggering. If you are already paying the bill, please ensure you are getting the service you deserve.
- Very relevant for Americans
Get your finances in order and have a plan of how you are going to look after yourself in old age.
- Who is going to look after you?
- How are you going to fund your retirement and old age?
- Have a pension (government pension is likely going to continually be pushed back or run out)
- Do you have investments?
- Do you have cash?
- Are you going to sell your home?
- Who looks after your children etc.
- Life insurance
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