Researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have determined half of American adults suffer from at least one chronic condition. One piece of good news uncovered by the data showed that the majority of the chronic diseases are ones that lie inside the realm of an individual’s control.
CDC officials warned how chronic diseases don’t just cause people to be unhealthy, suffer from disabilities and die too young, but they’re also linked to most of the country’s health care expenditures.
In comparison to other so-called “high-income countries,” Americans are less healthy, but also struggle with particular poor lifestyle habits that could end up having domino-like effects and causing more than one chronic disease. In fact, more than a quarter of adults in the United States have two or more chronic diseases.
Diabetes, heart disease and obesity are among the most common conditions. Also, lifestyle factors like unmanaged blood pressure, too much alcohol consumption, a lack of physical activity and an unhealthy diet put a person at a higher risk for being diagnosed with chronic diseases, yet all of those issues can be improved or even eliminated, especially with a physician’s guidance.
Officials clarify in order to reduce the prevalence of chronic diseases in America’s adult population, it’ll be necessary to adopt a team approach. While it’s important for patients to participate in self-management strategies and make lifestyle changes, it’ll also be important for them to be part of communities that make it easier to live in healthy ways.
One suggestion from the CDC researchers is that by emphasizing preventative care, it’ll be more possible for people to avoid the threat of chronic diseases. The data about chronic diseases was published by The Lancet as part of a series of papers called The Health Of Americans. Another one of the publications in the series echoes how there needs to be collaborative efforts between healthcare providers and communities.
Ideally, people would have easier and more direct access to healthcare when it’s needed, learn strategies that promote overall good health rather than solely focusing on preventing chronic diseases, and finally, the healthcare system at large would retool its focus to make populations healthier.
The CDC paper talks about how a plan that tackles all three of the areas above would “improve health equity.” Clearly, there’s a long way to go if the country wants to get serious about reducing the statistics related to chronic diseases, but at least there have been clear suggestions made about how to get started.
[Image Credit: The Guardian]
Chronic Diseases Affect Half Of Adult Americans, But Most Conditions Are Preventable is a post from: The Inquisitr News
Chronic Diseases Affect Half Of Adult Americans, But Most Conditions Are Preventable
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