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WELLNESS
WHY SHOULD I BE
HEALTHY? by BRANDI MCCARTHY, RHN
I have been in the health and fitness industry for over 11 years now and it still never ceases to amaze me how
much confusion there is about what contributes to our health, and what diminishes it, what brings us closer to
our goals and what pushes us further away. Of course everyone has their opinion, their anecdotes, their
agenda’s, but what it really comes down to is cold hard facts - knowledge. Knowledge is power......and anyone
who has ever seen a Spiderman movie knows that with great power comes great responsibility! Super hero
references aside, it holds true, we all have a responsibility to ourselves, our families and our communities to
be the healthiest we can be, to thrive and grow and be free from dis-ease (no, not a typo).
What does my health have to do with my community??
In a recent press release from the Canadian Diabetes Association they announced that if we don’t make some
pretty drastic changes, by the year 2020 type 2 diabetes could cost the province a whopping seven billion
dollars annually! Even Dr. Evil would be astounded by such a staggering number. Those seven billion dollars
are tax payer dollars. Your dollars and my dollars. By those estimates the association believes that by 2020 one
in four people will be affected by either type 2 diabetes or pre-diabetes. The associations’ president, Michael
Cloutier said in a news release, “The economic burden of diabetes in Ontario is staggering and threatens the
sustainability of our health-care system and the provincial economy.”
The provincial economy. One disease, one preventable disease is threatening the entire provinces economy!
This is exactly what I mean when I say that we have a responsibility to our community to be as healthy as we
can be. The cost of poor health is more than a trip to the doc’s, a monthly prescription and a larger pair of pants;
it threatens to cripple our provinces health-care system. And it’s not just type 2 diabetes. There are hundreds of
diet related diseases that are 100% preventable. We are just not taking enough interest in preventing them
because we don’t feel that it will affect anyone except ourselves.
I know this all sounds incredibly harsh, but unfortunately it’s also incredibly true. We all need to understand
the implication of poor health beyond our own front door.
And what about behind our own front door?
Fortunately this story is not all doom and gloom! There is so much you can do right now to positively impact
your own health! Making simple changes one step at a time can go a long way to improved health and
longevity! Get outside and go for a walk in the evenings, this one simple step can help lower your risk of
diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure and countless other preventable ailments. Need something a little
more fun? Join a fitness class or a gym! I promise, they are not nearly as intimidating as you may think – you’ll
get a great workout and interact with other members in your community too.
And of course I can’t forget the food! Start small and just keep moving forward. Try to double the number of
fruit and vegetables you eat over the next month, if you are still buying white breads and pastas switch to whole
wheat, if you already eat whole wheat, try sprouted grains. There is always a way to improve what you are
currently doing. When you hit a roadblock or have no idea where to start, don’t be afraid to ask for help. If you
aren’t sure where the heck to start, hire a nutritionist, we really can help! If you would prefer a group setting,
22 The Bulletin | 13TH YEAR www.TheBulletinMagazine.com