A health risk factor is anything that increases your chance of getting sick, of getting a disease, of breaking a leg, or of gaining weight. The problem is it is tough keeping up with all the possible risks because they keep on changing. Let me simplify what is meant by health risk. There are certain risk factors that put you at high risk for various diseases and conditions and they are not likely to change, a least not for the next 20 years or so. For instance, being obese usually puts you at high risk for diabetes, for cardiovascular problems, for joint and tendon problems, and liver problems. Obesity is not going to change as a high risk factor.
Other risk factors can change. For instance, eating eggs, especially the yolks, at one time put you at high risk for cholesterol problems. Or at one time you thought eating apples was healthy and you ate one a day. Then the report was made public about the pesticides found on apples. You stopped eating them a year ago and then you switched to organic brands which promise less pesticide. Two years ago the risk of eating egg yolks was lowered. It happens all the time and now, with the Internet, we learn about the risk changes even quicker.
The fact is we are human beings and live in an imperfect world and whatever we do has a risk factor. Each time we choose to do something, consciously or unconsciously, we evaluate the risk factor that belongs to that task. We weigh the risk and the benefits. For instance, the drive to and from the airport is far more likely to end in injury or death than your flight to Chicago. Most often, we act on imperfect and incomplete information but we do the best that we can. In spite of ourselves, the world does not come to an end.
So how do we take in all this information and apply it to our health? How do we figure out what are our health risks.
One health risk that has been evaluated for you is the smoking factor. Most states have prohibited smoking in all public places and as a result fewer adults are not smoking. The number of teens not smoking, however, has not decreased as much. Teens think of themselves as able to handle any and all risks that life may throw at them. Adults, with their better developed brains, are better able to evaluate the risk of smoking to their health. When we take responsibility for our health, although you and I have no special expertise, to make intelligent decisions about our health based on the information and misinformation we receive, we need to look beyond the obvious.
For instance, there are hundreds of studies that show the relationship between cholesterol and heart disease. That is hardly news. What does become news is when there is a study that fails to make the connection. That becomes the study that makes the headlines. Even so common sense tells us it would be silly to change our lives based on just one news article and one study.
It is true that we should not throw out what we learn, but we do need to figure out what it means. If you are like me, you are not interested in taking a course in medical research. Still, there are some general principles that we can apply when trying to form intelligent opinions.
For instance, a good study has an objective, a particular finding that requires being researched. The information should be more than uncontrolled anecdotal rehashes. In fact, one important safeguard against bad science is peer review, in which scientists scrutinize the work of each in advance. You can be very skeptical of studies that have no peer review. On the other hand, just because a research article was peer reviewed does not mean some of the data can be wrong, or falsified.
A less formal way of figuring out the worth of a research report is to consider the opinions of the experts who are quoted in the press. It helps us, as consumers, to see the kinds of commentary a study evokes from the experts. They also may not guarantee that something is accurate but at least we get some consolation. Your personal physician is also a good source if you want help to interpret the data. What you should expect is that if the information stands up as accurate for several years, then the government and different associations establish guidelines and start offering free information on the topic.
ruthan brodsky writes on health and business topics of particular interest to babyboomers. as a copywriter and content strategist she is highly regarded as a copywriter and content strategist making complicated topics easily understood. discover how you can be good to your pocket book and to your planet. claim your special report,green living tips for boomers, at http://www.greenlivingforboomers.comgreen living for boomers
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