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Every time a new health or wellness trend emerges, there's a mad rush to incorporate the shiny new routine into our daily lives. From restrictive diets to celebrity-endorsed workouts, staying up to date on the latest quick fix can be exhausting, and these sorts of lifestyle changes are rarely sustainable.
I have long doubted the efficacy of quick fixes and one-size-fits-all wellness plans, because, ultimately, we're all different. I believe (and science demonstrates) that the most effective health interventions are developed over a lifetime, through an individualized approach. This means we need new wellness goals altogether.
Our Costly Obsession With Quick Fixes
It's no secret that the health and wellness industry is obsessed with quick fixes, to the detriment of consumer spending. According to a recent study, the lifetime cost of fitness is more than many colleges' tuition, with survey respondents spending $155 per month on average. This includes expenses associated with gym memberships, health supplements and fitness accessories, which may or may not be tossed out after a single session of use. This means most Americans will spend about $112,000 on wellness interventions over the course of their lives.
Don't get me wrong: Investing in your health is important. It's arguably the most crucial investment you can make. But too many people lack the individualized health information to make informed decisions about where their resources are going. This means consumers are wasting money on offerings that promise health and wellness, but don't provide personalized support. It's a problem, especially when we have the tools to make better investments in long-term health.
Quick Fixes Versus Preventive Care
Contrary to popular belief, you can have the healthiest lifestyle in the world and still find yourself facing a surprising and devastating diagnosis. Unless you're being screened regularly to assess your risks for common chronic and fatal illnesses (as I wrote about recently for Fast Company Executive Board), the lifestyle interventions you're making may not have the outcomes you desire.
An example: For decades, public health messaging has reassured people that avoiding smoking is the best way to prevent lung cancer, and while this is certainly true, non-smokers are still at risk. According to the American Cancer Society, as many as 20% of Americans who die from lung cancer have never smoked or used any form of tobacco. To make matters worse, despite serious restrictions on the tobacco industry and smoking, lung cancer remains the leading cause of cancer death in the U.S., and rates among non-smokers are rising. Clearly, we can't rely on a one-size-fits-all approach when it comes to preventing disease.
In order to prioritize preventive care, we must first understand that health is not only measured by how you appear — "healthy living" doesn't look the same for everyone. A better way to ensure optimal health is to understand what is going on below the surface. With today's technology, testing companies (such as the one I founded) can detect disease early through genomic blood tests, ultrasounds and MRI scans that screen for conditions like cancer, diabetes and high cholesterol and provide a new level of insight into your real health risks. These tests give a personalized, high-precision picture of health that allows providers and wellness coaches to tailor lifestyle interventions to specific needs.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, simple preventive care services like flu shots and cancer screenings could save over 100,000 lives every year. Chronic diseases like cancer, diabetes and heart disease are responsible for 7 out of 10 American deaths annually, but 30%-50% of cancer cases are preventable, and the Department of Health and Human Services believes 1 million heart attacks could be prevented by 2027 with the right preventive care interventions.
In addition to saving lives, this approach cuts costs: on a national scale, early diagnoses can save the U.S. $26 billion per year and help patients avoid life-altering medical debt. Interventions that can prevent or delay chronic illnesses can help alleviate substantial financial burdens on already overtaxed healthcare systems.
Shifting Mindsets
The COVID-19 pandemic was a wake-up call for many of us, forcing us to take a sobering look at our health and helping us develop new perspectives on what really matters. With it, preventive health measures have become more common. If you've ever gotten tested for COVID-19, or worn a mask on a crowded flight before visiting a grandparent, you've participated in preventive care. Precautions such as these have proved to be effective at reducing outbreaks and mitigating risk. Why shouldn't we apply the same overall strategy to other major causes of death and disease?
While getting screened on a regular basis might seem like a new approach, it's simply another form of preventive care. And surely the past three years have taught us that a long, healthy life matters more than showing off our 30-day cleanse to our social media followers.
Ditching quick fixes in favor of investing in life-saving preventive care will require a societal shift, but we have the tools to do it. By utilizing new tech, communicating that lifestyle guidance should be individualized and spending money where it counts, we can lead a paradigm shift that will improve health outcomes for decades to come.
When it comes to my personal strategy to protect my life, I am skipping the quick fixes and instead focusing on the proven factors that are likely to protect me: healthy nutrition, frequent exercise and annual screenings, including genomic blood tests and full-body MRIs. I choose this path because it follows science.