Preventive Care – Saving You Time and Money (and Possibly Your Life)
As the popular adage goes "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure," but many of us take good health for granted and only think about how we're feeling when we're sick.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, six out of 10 Americans suffer from chronic diseases and four out of 10 have two or more diseases. Many of these are caused by what are known as "risk behaviors" and are preventable.
Most people don't know they're ill or have a disease until they experience symptoms, but by that point, they already have a problem. That's what makes preventive care so important. Preventive care is a completely different way of thinking focused on consistently maintaining good health instead of only thinking about your health when you're sick.
The goal of preventive care is to prevent or delay the onset of illness or disease before you notice any symptoms. One way to do this is to have regular checkups with your provider, who can help identify lifestyle changes you can make to avoid certain conditions. You can also choose to have lab tests, scans, and screenings performed. These can lead to an earlier diagnosis and easier treatment of certain conditions.
Starting treatment or lifestyle changes before a disease begins or while it's still in its early stages can help you stay healthier and recover more quickly.
It is important to stay healthy and access prompt treatment when necessary, so keeping up on annual checkups and getting regular screenings is vital. Preventive care through screenings can also help reduce your overall medical expenses. Catching problems in the early stages when medical conditions are more readily treatable can be a lot less expensive than the long-term costs of managing disease.
Got to reidhealth.org/screenings for more information.