What To Do

I'm devoting this week's writing to our collective healthcare system. Here's the gist, so far:

• Each of our individual choices regarding our health and wellness impacts everyone else
• We need to spend less money on healthcare to save the healthcare system (and perhaps our entire economy)

There are three, very simple things each and every one of us can do to make a difference:

1. Drink only water
2. Eat at home
3. Exercise for at least 30 minutes every day

Period. More tomorrow...

Why It Matters

We are in "it" together. Life, that is, and our healthcare system. Having spent 20+ years consulting in the healthcare system, I could spend hours explaining how each and every one of us impacts the healthcare system for the rest of us. I won't bore you with the details, instead, will trust you trust me. If you're interested. write to me and I'd be happy to explain the technical details. For now, consider this:

Think of a balloon. There is only so much air we can put into the balloon before it will burst. The strength of the balloon walls will eventually collaspe with the increased pressure of adding air. Our healthcare system will also collapse unless we do something drastically different. Why?

We continue to spend more money on healthcare in the United States. Healthcare is now 17.3% of the GDP; we spent $2.5 trillion dollars on healthacare in 2009. Part of the spend is inefficiency and can be fixed, but it almost doesn't matter. Here's why:

• The vast majority of money we spend in our healthcare system is to treat conditions that are largely preventable and are directly related to lifestyle choices
• New drugs, tests and surgeries only add cost to the system and their efficacy in treating long-term lifestyle choices is suspect, at best.

The only way to save our healthcare system is for each and every one of us to get, and stay, as healthy as we can. This isn't my problem or your problem, it is our collective problem. If so much of our collective money goes to pay for healthcare we have less money for other things (like education and social security ). It doesn't matter how much of your insurance premium you pay or how much your employer pays. The money comes from somewhere. And the cost goes somewhere. It Acme Manufacturing Company has to pay more in healthcare costs for its employees it is adding those costs to the price you pay for the widget at the store.

Put simply, we have to stop spending so much on healthcare. The only way to do that is for each of us to stop needing so much healthcare. How? We have to reverse the trend of obesity so we use less of our healthcare dollars to treat the preventable health problems (like weight loss surgeries and prespcription drugs to treat high blood pressure, cholestorol and diabetes).

We have to do what we can, each and every day, so that we have a healthcare system to help us when we really need it.

Health Matters

Two facts:

• Health insurance premiums continue to rise (even with passage of health reform)
• Obesity costs the US $147 billion per year (in direct medical costs alone)

These two facts are related. The amount we pay in health insurance premiums is impacted by many things, including the inefficiency of the system and the cost of administration. It is also significantly impacted by the costs associated with obesity. As the costs of obesity rise so will our health insurance premiums. Carole Carson wrote today, "One out of two Americans will require treatment for diabetes or prediabetes-at an annual cost of $3.35 trillion-less than 10 years from now..."

I contend solving rampant obesity is critical for the United States. Our economy simply cannot withstand the pressure of this largely preventable spend. Our effort and ability to maintain our own health could be considered our patriotic duty.

More as the week goes on. For now, consider this... are you doing everything in your power to maintain a healthy weight and stay healthy? 

'"A New Way to Eat Fruit.'?" Really? But, why?

Ah, television commercials. They really do expose you to new things. Last night, I saw a commercial for Fruit2day and their tag line "A New Way to Eat Fruit." Really? Do we need a new way to eat fruit? Is the old way to eat fruit not working for us? Curiousity got the best of me and, today, the trusty Internet enlightened me.

From the Fruit2day website:

So, now I know. Or, at least, now I know this company's version of why. All of these reasons I will summarize into, "It is just too darn hard to eat real fruit." You might have to peel, slice, chop or even...  bite the fruit to eat it! Wow, such effort required.

The company, by the way, is Hero WhiteWave a joint venture between Hero Group (from Switzerland) and WhiteWave Foods (which is owned by Dean Foods Company who is also the manufacturer of the recently questioned Horizon "Organic" milk and Land O'Lakes butter and Silk Soymilk).

Point #1: This product is produced by a company owned by a publically-traded, for-profit company seeking to maximize shareholder value. 

What is this stuff? According to the label it is juice from concentrate, small pieces of fruit and "natural flavor." There are two servings per bottle and they are sold in a two-pack for the suggested retail price of $3.75. Each serving has 110-120 calories depending on the flavor you choose. It is good? I don't know, I haven't gone to buy any (yet; I may for sake of the blog). If you have tried it, I'd love to hear from you. Personally, juice with chunks sounds a bit gross.

Point #2: The words natural flavor on the label can signify both natural and synthetic additives. Yes, something synthetic can be labeled "natural." I'm not making this up, see the FDA website.

While I wouldn't suggest eating a pineapple while driving to work, I do happen to love a fresh, local peach so juicy that I have to stand over the trash can when I eat it. And, let's face it, spitting cherry pits and watermelon seeds was one of the best things about being a kid. Sticky hands after an orange? You know it was a good orange. Goodness people! I don't want to live in a sterile box. Sometimes getting dirty are the good parts of life.

Point #3: If we remove any and all actual experience from eating, we might as well just pop a few "food" pills each day and get on with it. Eating, real food, is fun. Let's not completely ruin it.


Story warning! This, I do not know, it is simply a suspicion. The people making this product did not create it for the urban poor who don't have adequate access to real fruit. This product was made for the people who can afford to buy it from their suburban grocery stores. They buy this stuff instead of real fruit because the commercial makes us believe it is better. Yes, you too can have your fruit chunks mixed with juice from concentrate in a plastic bottle with natural (aka synthetic) flavor. Yummy.

Downtown Detroit, Michigan is considered a food desert because of the lack of major grocery stores. You cannot get Fruit2day within 5 miles of Detroit zip code 48226. If you're living in this area and want fruit chunks in a bottle, so sorry, you're going to have to walk more than 5 miles. Perhaps this company should donate a bottle, each day, to each child attending school in 48226 so they get something at least close to real fruit in their diet.

Point #4: This isn't a "great, new, save the world idea." This is a business (who wants to make a profit, see point #1). 

Okay, so here's the real deal:

• People do not get enough fruit in their diet.
• Helping people eat more fruit is a good thing.
• Processing fruit into a a plastic bottle is huge waste of resources and energy (packaging, processing, transportation, waste).
• Fruit does not need to be processed to be eaten. In fact, much of it comes already conveniently packaged from nature (peels, rinds and skins to protect it).
• The only reason this product exists is because it is (or can be) profitable. 
• Selling real fruit? Not as profitable. 

Yes, I'm a dreamer. It simply seems to me that if companies with the resources to process something like Fruit2day could, instead, spend their time and effort figuring out a way to help people eat actual, real, whole fruit. Give each child a strawberry plant. Line city blocks with apple trees. Share the joy of peach juice running down your chin.  You must admit, eating real fruit is a better idea. 

 

Affordable, on purpose.

When you talk about the same thing over and over again to different people, most of the time you get the key points across though you may use different words. Sometimes we use different words because of our audience and other times we use different words because saying exactly the same thing over and over again can get pretty boring.

I talk about Cybercise. A lot. The talks have gotten different (and I hope better) over time as we’ve added new features and new content. Nonetheless, I have my “elevator speech” down and can deliver a more in-depth explanation in about 4 minutes.  I was going through the 4-minute rendition of Cybercise on the phone last week and at some point I said, “Cybercise is affordable on purpose.”

The person on the other end of the line stopped me. In fact, he said, “Whoa! That is brilliant. What you just said. It really resonates with me. You are ‘affordable on purpose’.”

I read Seth Godin’s blog “On Pricing Power” which has got me thinking. Cybericse has pricing power because we are affordable on purpose. We are affordable on purpose because we can be. We set our membership price at $10 per month to help the people who can’t afford to go to the gym and don’t have the money in their budget to hire a personal trainer and nutrition consultant. We decided on $10 a month because it is something (and studies show free things seldom stick) and it enables us to keep creating and delivering meaningful content without subjecting you to ads and without selling supplements, powders, goo and all the other crazy “health” stuff you see on late night television.

Our goal? Sustainable wellness. We want to you help you discover how to get yourself well and, more importantly, keep yourself well. We’re affordable on purpose so there is one less barrier between you and being the best you possible. And when you’re the best you possible, anything is possible.

Health is Not *only* the Absence of Sickness

Recently, I attended a focus group with a small group of women to talk about health. The group was asked the question, "How do you know your family is healthy?" The overwhelming response was because they weren't sick. I must admit, I was surprised.

Being healthy and well is so much more than "not being sick." Much like being happy is much more than not being sad. Or being fulfilled is much more than a good job or a good set of friends.

I've wondered, since the focus group, how we can expand the defintion of health and wellness so that it helps people reach higher and strive for more than "not being sick."

Maybe part of the global challenge to get people to take better care of themeselves is their definition of health is too narrow. In the land of "I'm healthy because I'm not sick" people wouldn't be as likely to make positive proactive choices before they got sick. Why would they? Let's face it, quitting smoking isn't fun so why would you torture yourself by trying to quit before your first heart attack? After the first heart attack, the story gets much different. If you want an incredibly inspiring story about health and cancer read about Kris Carr.

So, why should you work on your health if you're not sick? Because you'll feel better. Because there is so much possibility in life and so many things we can do during our lifetime and all of those things are easier when you feel well. Feeling well is (in my definition) having energy, passion and a sense of awe. It is believing in something and working to make it better.

I imagine a world where the vast majority of people report "feeling well." I imagine a world where, with all of this positive energy, we come together to solve the world's problems. Energy. Heatlhcare. Hunger. Disease. War. Well... why not?

"How far is far, how high is high? We'll never know until we try." From the Special Olympics Song.

March 1, 2011

In keeping with day 1 of your New Spring Resolutions, I'm going to quote from one of my favorite authors and favorite books. "Oh! The Places You'll Go" by Dr. Seuss.

Congratulations!

Today is your day.
You’re off to Great Places!
You’re off and away!

You have brains in your head.
You have feet in your shoes.
You can steer yourself any direction you choose.
You’re on your own. And you know what you know.

And YOU are the guy who’ll decide where to go.

Happy New Spring Resolution day!