Now Is a Good Time to Take Control of Your Health

The data is pretty astounding--nearly 75% of American men and 60% of American women are obese or over weight, while 55% of Americans take at least one prescription medication--this is not how people should live their lives.  We are seeing rapidly increasing numbers of people with type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol which leads to heart attacks, cancer, and strokes at earlier and earlier ages.  In a SHTF situation, not only can these people not help themselves, they are going to be utterly screwed when it comes to continuing to medicate what for many are lifestyle choices and not organic medical conditions (if you have type 1 diabetes this article is not aimed at you--for this and certain other diseases, no amount of lifestyle changes will change your medical condition).

A while back the doc noted that my blood pressure was higher than it should be and offered to write a prescription for medication to lower it.  I would like to think that blood pressure increases with age, which it does to a point, but the fact is that while I do exercise regularly, we also eat out quite a bit and I have never really paid much attention to my diet because I don't gain weight so figured I can eat whatever I want as long as I exercise.  Apparently you can't out-exercise bad eating habits.

So I declined the medication, got a blood pressure cuff, and changed my diet significantly.  Predictably my blood pressure dropped like a rock when I wasn't eating so much restaurant and processed food (I look at food labels all the time now, it's shocking how much sodium nearly everything that comes in a package has!).

The moral of this story is that if you are in an out-of-control situation with your health and have the ability to take control of the situation, do so.  It's much better to rely on yourself than on doctors/medications that increase in price nearly daily/wrangling with health insurance companies/etc.  Having one less thing to worry about, namely health concerns, is one way to prepare for whatever may happen in the future.

Some health-related websites that I recommend: Dr Gregor, Dr McDougall, Dr Esselstyn,  Dr Fuhrman, Dr Campbell

Some health-related movies to stream: Forks Over Knives, Fat Sick and Nearly Dead (1 & 2), What the Health, Food Inc, Fed Up, Hungry for Change, In Defense of Food

Top 10 Global Health Threats for 2019

The WHO recently released their 'top ten threats to global health for 2019' list.  And while most preppers are getting ready for something akin to a zombie apocalypse, people are orders of magnitude more likely to suffer from a major health incident than anything zombie or apocalypse-related.  Fortunately, many of the threats on the list are things you have direct control over, so in the interest of prepping for things that will actually happen, here are some things to consider:

1. Air pollution and climate change.  Air pollution=bad...obviously, yet I still see people inhaling particulates (in bakeries, wood working, steel working, etc) which is no bueno for your lungs.  Wear a mask if you are in an area with high air particulate matter, whether this is a polluted city, in an area with active forest fires, in a business with any sort of dust in the air, etc.
2. Non-communicable diseases.  This is where people can make the most difference in their mortality rate for diseases like cancer and cardiac diseases.  Eat nutritiously, get plenty of exercise, sleep well, deal with stress, take care of mental health issues, etc.
3. Global influenza pandemic.  We've seen some bad flu years lately but nothing on a pandemic scale...yet.  Do what you can to prevent the flu including getting a flu shot, keeping your hands clean, not touching your face with unclean hands, avoiding sick people, etc.
4. Fragile and vulnerable settings.  When I hear this term, I think of sub-Saharan Africa or Southeast Asia and while drought, war, and famine are pretty far from our everyday experience here in the US, the after-affects of such events can still be felt here.
5. Antimicrobial resistance.  Whoda thunk it--massively overusing antibiotics and all of those antibacterial wipes/soaps/sanitizers would create super bugs which are immune to drugs that kill bacteria?  We are getting to that point now so I guess the lesson learned is to not use antibiotics/antibacterials unless they are absolutely necessary.
6. Ebola and other high-threat pathogens.  Highly infectious diseases are, obviously, to be avoided at all costs.  Fortunately in the US this isn't usually a problem, unfortunately, you never know where the guy in the airplane seat next to you has been and what highly communicable diseases he has been exposed to.
7. Weak primary health care.  I'm a fan of universal healthcare because I'd rather be surrounded by health people than sick people.  Universal health care means easy access to primary care for everyone so medical problems can be caught early and fixed rather than having people wait until they are nearly dead before being rushed to the ER.
8. Vaccine hesitancy.  Anti-vaxxers are a blight on our communities.  Vaccines work, and while there are very specific instances when people shouldn't get a vaccine, the vast majority of people are safer by being vaccinated (example here).
9. Dengue fever.  This is fairly straight-forward for folks in the US--avoid places with dengue fever.  Dengue is very uncommon in the US but very common in many tropical countries (thus the need to avoid mosquitoes or use bug spray religiously if you will be in any of those places).
10. HIV.  HIV has changed from a death sentence to a long-term chronic disease for the most part, however, avoiding this disease all together is the best option--use safe sex practices and avoid blood-born pathogens (don't share needles, avoid needle sticks, and make sure blood used for transfusions is safe).

Daily Preparedness Tip: Your Health and Fitness is Most Important

Of the top 10 leading causes of death, nine are health and fitness related!  So while most preppers are focused on food and water and guns, 99.8% of the time, how healthy and fit they are will be the determining factor in their survival.  Keeping a stockpile of food and water and cash are important, but exercising for at least an hour everyday and choosing the healthiest food to eat (you have to eat anyway so why not make it healthy stuff) are way more important than how much ammo you have.  Just randomly looking at people out in public tells me the vast majority of them couldn't walk a few miles to an emergency shelter to save their lives!  So work on health and fitness every single day then work on preps, a little at a time, as you have the money and ability to do so.

10 Items to Carry At All Times to Protect Your Health

Your EDC bag should include the following items to protect your health:

1. Condom.  Prevents STDs and unwanted children.
2. Disposable dust mask.  Don't breathe in particulate matter, it's bad for your lungs.
3. Nitrile gloves.  Prevents blood born pathogen exposure if you roll up on an emergency.
4. Packet of cayenne pepper.  Clots blood quickly.
5. Tourniquet.  Stops bleeding in an emergency.
6. Disposable coin towel.  Just add water and you have a full-sized towel.
7. Alcohol wipes.  Good for disinfecting things, cleaning hands, and as an emergency fire starter.
8. Mylar blanket.  To stave off hypothermia and these other uses.
9. Tampon.  For its official purpose and these other uses.
10. Emergency food ration tablets.  High calorie tablets to keep you from starving in an emergency.

National Preparedness Month Day 5--Your Health

The most important way you can be prepared for anything is to be in good health.  Whether you need to escape an active shooter by running a good distance, find yourself in an area like Puerto Rico after a massive hurricane which wipes out all medical services, or have a smaller emergency which requires working a 16 hour shift/nursing a sick child all night/walking to work because your car is dead, being in excellent health to begin with will make all of these situations a little easier to deal with.

Your good health encompasses the following areas:

• Having your vaccinations up to date.  Anti vaxxers are idiots, don't listen to them; unless there is a solid medical reason for not being vaccinated, save yourself/your kid a bout of measles or polio and keep your vaccines up to date.  
• Eating nutritious food.  A Whole Food Plant Based diet works wonders for many people.  
• Exercising every day.  Include cardio, strength, and flexibility exercises such as stretching, walking/jogging, calisthenics, and weights.
• Mind your health metrics.  Keep your weight, blood pressure, blood sugar, and cholesterol numbers in check.
• Have your vision and hearing checked/corrected as needed.
• Stay on top of your dental health as well (it's pretty heard to function with tooth pain, an abscess, or rotting teeth).
• Also take care of your mental health.  Stress reduction, developing coping skills, and asking for help when you need it are all important parts of your mental, and in fact, overall, health.
• If you must take prescription or OTC medication, try to stockpile at least a 90 day supply in case you can't get to a pharmacy to refill your prescriptions in a timely manner.
• If you have significant health issues, make a comprehensive plan for what you would do in an emergency (do you have someone to call in to help you, do you have back-up electricity for necessary medical devices, are you able to evacuate far in advance of any possible disaster headed your way, do you have back-up glasses/hearing aids, etc).

How Not To Die--The Video

Here is an interesting video to check out.  About half the video is a presentation on health, the other half is a question and answer session.  Here are some take-aways from the video:

• What you eat impacts your health.  Your health impacts how well you will do in a survival situation.  Take care of your health.
• You don't need to believe one guy.  Do you own research on whatever the topic is and rely on science (good science, not scientific studies that skew the results towards the study's funders, or worse, emotions and advertisements).
• The section on smoking is a good example of how we are manipulated by companies/industries, advertisers, the media, social media especially, and anyone else who wants to pay to sway our attention to where they want it to be, not necessarily on what is true and factual.

Suicide

Suicide rarely comes up as a preparedness topic, mostly because preppers are proactively looking for ways to survive whatever happens, not check out permanently.  But suicide is a topic that everyone should be familiar with as it affects many, many families in our community--maybe even yours--and the incidence of suicides are rising dramatically. 

Data from 2012 shows that 64% of all gun-related deaths in the US were suicide--not homicides, not using a gun to protect yourself, but people choosing a quick and effective way to kill themselves.  Needless to say, since many preppers also own guns, the possibility of your gun being used by someone, quite possibly a family member, to commit suicide, should make all of us more aware of the need to safeguard our weapons from someone who would use them in this manner.

Most importantly, however, is the ability to get help for someone who is feeling suicidal.  You can do this by knowing the risk factors and warnings of suicide, knowing who to call for help when someone is feeling suicidal, and talking to someone you suspect may be suicidal.

On a related note, our military suicide numbers are even more staggering than that of the civilian population (nearly double).  A lot has been written about veterans and suicide (here, here, and here) but a definitive solution has yet to be found. If you know a veteran/active duty military member who may be suicidal, the Veterans Crisis Line is there to help.

25 Health Questions

When you are in an emergency situation (or even just visiting your doctor) be prepared to answer these common health questions:

1. Do you have allergies (include environmental, food, and medication allergies)?
2. What prescription and non-prescription medications do you take (include name and dosage, list of vitamins you take, etc)?
3. Do you take any illegal drugs (what kind and how often)?
4. What is your medical history (include a list of surgeries, medical procedures, hospitalizations, major illnesses, etc)?
5. Are your vaccinations up to date (these should be listed, include date and type of each immunization)?
6. Do you have health insurance (have the name of the insurance company, plan ID number, and group ID number on hand)?
7. What is your weight and height?
8. Have you traveled outside of your area in the past year (includes places/countries visited, dates, and any unusual circumstances including exposures to illness, animals, etc)?
9. Do you have a Will, Living Will, Medical Power of Attorney, Advanced Medical Directive, etc?
10. Who is your next of kin (name, address, and phone number)?
11. What religious beliefs do you have that may impact your medical care?
12. What are your health metrics (blood pressure, blood glucose level, and cholesterol level)?
13. What are your lifestyle factors (do you drink, smoke)?
14. Are you pregnant or could you be pregnant?  How many times have you been pregnant and outcomes?
15. Do you exercise (how many times a week, type of exercise, and duration)?
16. How is your diet (in general what do you eat)?
17. What illnesses and diseases run in your family (heart attacks? strokes? mental health issues? cancers? etc)?
18. Do you have any mental health issues (diagnosed or undiagnosed; include depression, suicidal feelings or attempts, diagnosed mental illnesses, etc)?
19. What is your sexual health history?
20. Do you use any assistive devices (hearing aids, walker/cane, dentures, prosthetics, etc)?
21. Do you have any implants (surgical mesh, stents, hip or other joint replacements, etc)?
22. What kind of birth control do you use?
23. Are you up to date on common health screenings (PAP test and mammograms for women, colonoscopy, etc)?
24. Have you had your vision tested recently/do you wear glasses or contacts?
25. Have you had your hearing tested recently?

Post-Medical Emergency Prep Tips

Now that the spouse is home and a medical crisis has been averted, here are a few post-medical emergency prep tips:

• Scan the discharge paperwork and keep the file on your computer as well as on your cell phone (should another emergency occur you can quickly show this information to medical responders as well as ED staff if you end up at a different hospital).
• Take a photo of each prescription bottle and keep it on your cell phone (for the same reason as above).
• Use those daily pill organizers to keep meds straight.
• Review your Will, Living Will, and Medical Power of Attorney (when the hospital staff asked if there was a Living Will and Medical Power of Attorney the answer was yes but we hadn't reviewed these documents in years so it was a good reminder to review these documents every once in a while).
• Pre-package a few day's worth of meds and add them to your EDC bag and BOB in case you aren't home when they need to be taken (in our case, both the spouse and I carry the extra packets of meds in case one doesn't have their bag or runs out).
• Ask your physician for 90 day prescriptions if possible (in a disaster scenario having additional meds until you can reach an open pharmacy may be important).
• Make and keep all follow-up appointments with physicians and specialists.
• Study up on your medical conditions and be as knowledgeable about your condition and treatment as possible.
• Make any necessary changes--no matter how drastic--to your diet and exercise and other lifestyle factors in order to improve your health.

Your Health Is the Most Important Prepper Tool of All

I think we are going into 72 hours in the hospital.  Turns out the spouse had an actual heart attack after all of the testing was done.  While repairs are taking place now and I am very thankful this wasn't the more common heart attack (the kind where the first symptom is death), I can not overstate how important your health is.  You can have all the preps in the world and all the best training but if you don't put much of your prepping attention to keeping your health in tip top shape, all of your other preps won't matter.  So my short message today is to exercise every day, eat right, and pay attention to your health markers (weight, blood sugar levels, cholesterol levels, blood pressure, etc).  More later...

10 Things for a Health Emergency

The spouse was rushed to the hospital for a minor cardiac event last night.  While everything appears to be OK now, there were quite a few things that were good reminders for a health emergency...

1. Know when you should drive someone to the ER and when to call 911.
2. Have health insurance.  The health insurance system in the US is a hot mess but it is imperative to have some sort of health insurance, especially for unexpected emergencies.
3. Have a mini-BOB for each member of the family in the car at all times.  When I look at all of the times I've had to use my car BOB over the years, it usually involved an unexpected overnight stay somewhere (hospital, hotel, friend's house, etc).  A change of clothes, toiletry kit, a couple bottles of water, some food, cell charger, etc are basically the things you need to spend a night away from home unexpectedly.
4. Carry cash.  There are things at the hospital (like the cafeteria in this case) that only take cash.  Of course there is a convenient ATM nearby but you will pay to use it.  Carrying cash at all times takes care of this problem.
5. Have a family communication plan.  This way you can communicate with one person (or a group text) and not have to answer the same questions 25 times.
6. Be nice to the staff.  This hospital is pretty good (unlike the local level one trauma center/urban hospital which looks like Armageddon hit...on a daily basis).  Service here is not fast and there are several things they could do to improve efficiency but it is a good thing to be kind to the staff and appreciate their efforts which means they will be nicer to you.
7. If you find yourself in a health emergency situation, it is a good idea to have someone with you to act as your advocate, to help you remember the things the doctors are telling you, and to ask questions that someone in crisis may not think of.
8. Have a health info sheet you keep on your phone.  List current meds (prescription and over the counter), allergies, next of kin info. health history, etc.
9. Have people you can call in an emergency.  Hopefully these people can watch your kids at the last minute, give you a ride if needed, bring necessary items from your home to you at the hospital, check your home if you won't be there for a few days, etc.
10. Take notes.  If there are things you don't understand, ask.  If there are things you want to look up later, write it down, If you are given medication during your stay, write it down.  Keep a copy of all discharge paperwork, prescription information sheets, etc.   

5 New Years Resolutions (That Will Help Avert the Most Common Causes of Death)

Most people become preppers because they want to be able to keep themselves and their families safe from harm.  And when they think of harm, all manner of problems come to mind (rape, robbery, active shooters, kidnapping, et al).  But when you look at the actual statistics of how people die in the US, you will find that the most common causes of death have nothing at all to do with the aforementioned threats.  In actuality, people's bad health habits have much more to do with their future causes of death than any social/political/economic/etc issue.

First, check out this list of how people actually die in the US.

Then, consider that if you can avoid accidents (a declining cause of death) and suicide (unfortunately, an increasing cause of death), the rest of the top 15 causes rest heavily on how you treat your own body.

With that in mind, here are five New Year's Resolutions you may want to consider (that can do more for preventing your untimely death than, say, having a nice collection of firearms or a stockpile of food).

1. Walk everyday.  For at least an hour, preferably longer.
2. Engage in other physical activities.  Consider this list of sports.  Consider what you need to motivate yourself to do these sports (join a bowling league to keep you accountable, set a big goal like a mini triathlon and work towards that goal, join a hiking club, etc).
3. Make your diet healthy.  The paleo diet and the Mediterranean diet seem to be the most popular.  Both seem to limit junk food and both seem to limit mixing starchy carbs with protein.
4. Stop eating junk food (easy to say, not so easy to do when you consider more than 50% of the stuff in stores these days is junk).
5. Reduce stress.  Stress negatively impacts nearly every facet of your life if you don't get a handle on it.

25 Health Questions

Funny that we should be talking about health--right after a food-coma-inducing Thanksgiving weekend and before all of the goodies that will be popping up for the Christmas holidays--but getting a handle on your health isn't something you can wait to do.  In fact, there are people dropping dead today, as I type this, because they put their health on hold in order to concentrate on "more important things".  I can't think of anything that is more important for increasing your survival odds than being fit and healthy.  Here's 25 questions you should be able to answer about your health (and a good base-line for improving your health):

1. What is your height? I know plenty of guys whose driver's licenses say they are 6' tall when clearly that was either wishful thinking or they have greatly shrunk over time.  Knowing your actual height is part of the formula for finding your BMI.
2. What is your current weight? I also know plenty of women whose driver's licenses include a lot of wishful thinking when it comes to this question.
3. What is your body mass index? Your BMI tells you how much body fat you have and is a good indicator of your overall health.  Here is a simple calculator.
4. What is your blood pressure? This is another critical factor in your overall health--too high and you are much more prone to heart attack and stroke.
5. What is your blood glucose level? Many, many people are diabetic and don't even know it.  Don't wait until your eyesight, a kidney, or a limb is gone in order to be tested for--and control if necessary--this pervasive disease.
6. What is your cholesterol levels (HDL/LDL)?  This is yet another factor in determining your overall health and risk of heart disease and stroke.
7. Have you had your vision tested lately? You may not realize a decline in your vision but having your eyes tested regularly can preempt vision-associated problems.
8. Have you had your hearing tested lately? Ditto.  Many people don't realize their hearing is less than satisfactory because it declines so slowly.
9. Have you had a bone density test? This test, usually conducted on women, can tell you how strong your bones are and how likely you are to fracture your bones as you age as well as allow for preemtive treatment.
10. Have you had a complete physical lately? Men and women should have complete physicals every couple of years or as recommended by their doctor; this is a great way to catch disease early so you will have a better opportunity to treat it.
11. Have you been tested for cancer lately?  Tests for everything from breast and cervical cancer to colon and prostate cancer generally come along with your complete physical and are an excellent way to catch cancer when it is still treatable.
12. Have you had your thyroid checked lately?  This test can be overlooked during a complete physical but can often alert you to the reason you are having trouble with weight gain and other metabolic issues.
13. Have you had your blood iron level checked?  Anemia is quite common in women during their child-bearing years but isn't routinely tested for unless you have specific problems.  This test will, like many other tests, allow you to head off problems in their early stages.
14. Have you had your vitamin D levels tested?  Most Americans suffer from very low Vitamin D levels which can account for a multitude of problems ranging from depression to cancer.
15. Do you have persistent digestion issues?  You may want to be tested for parasites, especially if you have traveled widely.  If it isn't that, you may want to experiment with pro-biotics and decreasing stress to head off stomach issues.
16. What is your waist measurement?  This has recently been publicized as a pretty good indicator of your risk for diabetes and cardiovascular issues.
17. Have you had a c-reactive protein test done?  Like many of the other tests mentioned here, this isn't a normal test to do but it can shed a great deal of light on your your overall health as it measures the amount of inflammation in your body.
18. Do you smoke?  Smoking or using other tobacco products is detrimental to your overall health and predisposes you to a number of cancers and other diseases.  If you smoke, stop.
19. Do you have allergies?  Sometimes people are well aware of their allergies (to nuts or bee stings, for example), but many times people have food sensitivities or allergies that mimic other types of health problems and can cause sinus problems, stomach problems, migraines, etc.
20. Do you take drugs or drink alcohol in excess?  While a glass of wine occasionally is fine, ditto with a rare course of antibiotics, taking any sort of drugs or alcohol to excess will predispose you to a number of chronic--possibly fatal--health problems.
21. Have you been tested for sexually transmitted diseases lately?  Many STDs can have no symptoms for years so many carriers don't even know they have them.  Be tested regularly if you have multiple sex partners and occasionally if you are in a monogamous relationship (I hate to say it but there are quite a few people in supposedly monogamous relationships who end up with "mystery" STDs...).
22. Do you exercise regularly?  I hope the answer is yes.  Exercise is one of the leading prevention factors for a number of diseases and health problems.
23. Do you eat nutritious food as a rule instead of as an exception?  Again, I hope the answer is yes as the combination of healthy food and exercise can beat nearly every common medical problems that afflicts people in our society today.
24. Do you get regular vaccinations?  Every time I hear a parent say they don't want to vaccinate their kids I cringe at their stupidity.  Vaccinations may cause problems in a very small percentile of people but for the vast majority of human being, vaccinations are life savers.  Ask you doctor what vaccines you are due for. 
25. Do you chill out and de-stress regularly?  Some researchers put chronic stress above many of the most common causes of diseases and chronic illness simply because continuous stress can cause a person to have all sorts of health problems.

Answer these 25 questions then make a concerted effort to improve in ALL of these areas.  Being fit and healthy is, besides being a major factor in survivng TEOTWAWKI, a way to avoid illness and disease as you age.

Take Care of Your Health in Ten Easy Steps

The foundation of preparedness is making sure that you yourself are prepared (meaning your body, your mind, your health, your attitude, etc). Here's ten easy steps to get in top shape:

1. Have a complete annual physical to make sure you are well and/or to give you a baseline for improvement.
2. Make sure all of your vaccinations are up to date.
3. Have a complete dental exam and fix any problems found.
4. Exercise daily and eat right (simple but effective advice).
5. Take care of chronic health problems (ie: if you have diabetes, take your medication or insulin but exercise as well to bring down your blood sugar numbers).
6. Check out your environment and remove any hazards (this could be everything from home safety hazards to hazardous friends to bad health/wellness habits).
7. De stress. Stress causes any number of health problems. If you know how to de stress you will reduce the possibility of these problems.
8. Have health and wellness goals to aim for, whether it is running a marathon or being able to walk around the block. Keep raising the bar as you meet your goals.
9. Try new things that will help you get in better shape AND teach you something useful. Learning to kayak is a good way to exercise. Knowing how to kayak if you become stranded on a desert island, even more beneficial.
10. Encourage others to get healthy. If your life depends on your friends or family in a SHTF situation, don't you want them to be as able as possible to come to your aid?

When it comes to preparedness, many people focus on the big exciting things such as firearms, a cool bug out vehicle, or having enough camping equipment to shelter an entire platoon. The fact is, when it comes to a disaster, you may only have yourself to rely on so you need to be in tip top shape to be able to respond accordingly. Now go out and get active.

20 Tips to Improve Your Health

Well I had a nice long post outlining 20 tips to help you improve your health, fully narrated and explained in great detail then the damn thing disappeared. Instead of no post this evening, or tossing this computer out the window, I'll just give you the condensed version:

1. Sleep eight hours a night.
2. Exercise every day.
3. Stretch multiple times every day.
4. Eat a couple of pieces of fruit and a half dozen vegetables each day.
5. Walk more.
6. Get any necessary vaccines.
7. Stock only healthy snacks and get rid of the junk food from both home and work.
8. De stress your life; remove, as much as possible, things that cause stress and drama in your life.
9. Get outside every day (good for vitamin D, exercise, and fresh air).
10. Take any needed vitamins each day.
11. Skip restaurants; if you must go, choose ethnic restaurants or choose the healthiest choices on the menu.
12. Quit smoking.
13. Nix drugs and alcohol; addictions are unhealthy in general.
14. Change your environment to improve your health (ie: if you live/work in an unhealthy place, change things to improve the healthfulness of your environment).
15. Drink water in place of coffee, soda, and other beverages.
16. Sing everyday (in the privacy of your own home). It cheers you up and with proper technique will provide much needed oxygen to your lungs.
17. Keep on top of any chronic health problems.
18. Pay attention to your dental health (bad dental health has a negative impact on your physical health).
19. Get your health on paper: health insurance, disability insurance, a living will, a medical power of attorney, health records including medications, allergies, health history, etc.
20. Save your favorite junk food (ice cream, cookies, etc) for a weekly treat instead of a daily "fifth meal".

Health Prep Tips

While you are busy getting ready for the holidays, take some steps now to make sure you enter the new year in the most healthy way possible. When it comes down to it, your health is one of the most basic factors in your preparedness arsenal because without reasonably good health you will be seriously behind the eight ball when TSHTF. Here's how:

• Have a complete medical check up. Even with no or limited health insurance, paying out of pocket for a preventive health screening makes good financial sense. This should include screening for common medical problems (cholesterol, blood pressure, diabetes, and a colonoscopy/mammogram/other age-related health screening)
• Have a dental check up and cleaning, or a reline for dentures, or whatever else it takes to make sure your teeth are in good working order.
• Have your vision checked and corrected if necessary. Good vision is necessary for many survival situations.
• Have your hearing checked and corrected if necessary. Good hearing is also necessary for many survival situations.
• Exercise everyday. Exercise isn't a five day a week thing. Our ancestors were physically active all day, every day in centuries past and the need for such activity hasn't diminished just because technology has made our lives more sedentary.
• Eat nutritious food every day (and skip the chips, pop, donuts, cookies, Big Macs, etc). Surprisingly many people standing in line at the food pantry are fat. Seems odd doesn't it? People often go for cheap high calorie/low nutritional value food when they could ratchet back their spending and live much better on simple grains and whatever fruits and vegetables are on sale each week.
• De-stress. Stress is one of the leading killers in our society. Living in a constant state of semi-panic does nothing to solve the problem you are experiencing and can seriously trash your immune system.
• Do some of the old fashioned things that your grandparents used to do: go fishing, grow your own food, get fresh air every day, play outside, open the windows to air out the house on a regular basis, etc.

Good health isn't as hard as it seems--the old fashioned basics tend to work better then all of the new fads that come down the pike. Take care of yourself now so that during an emergency, your body can take care of you.

Health Preps...The Rest of the Story

We've covered physical preparedness skills, exercise, health, and nutrition outlining ways to incorporate nutrition and physical fitness in order to improve your health. Here are the rest of the things you need to do, health-wise, in order to be ready for anything:

• Get your vaccinations. We make sure our kids are vaccinated all the way through school but most adults stop getting vaccinations somewhere in their late teens. Make sure your tetanus shot is up to date and ask you physician about any other vaccinations you need (chicken pox, hepatitis, measles, etc.). If you will be traveling overseas, ask you doctor about location-specific vaccinations you need. Here's some info from the CDC on this topic.
• Take care of little health problems before they become big problems. See your doctor annually, your dentist bi-annually, have your vision tested as needed, keep up with any current medical problems (ie: diabetes, high blood pressure) by instating exercise and nutrition to combat these problems and of course, take medications for these problems as prescribed by your doctor.
• De-stress your life. Stress is one of the leading causes of the most common medical problems in our country (high blood pressure, heart disease, obesity, etc). Take up yoga, meditation, or anything else that will make you calm and serene.
• Use common sense, basic safety precautions to protect your health (and your life). Never drink and drive, use a helmet when you ride a bicycle or motorcycle, wear a life jacket when you are on small boats, use your seat belt religiously, don't drink out of that clear stream without purifying the water, etc.
• Take care of mental health issues, substance abuse issues, obesity, and domestic violence issues immediately. All of these problems can significantly lessen your life span. Unfortunately these types of conditions require action only by the person that has the problem since telling them "you have this problem, go get treated" doesn't work, unlike if someone has cancer or a broken leg--in these cases you don't have to point out that they have a problem and need to seek treatment. As a side note, all of these conditions can significantly decrease your ability to respond during a disaster.
• Realize that the most dangerous activities, statistically, are some of the most common. You don't find bungee jumping and snake wrangling on the mortality statistics pages--what you do find, in excess, when it comes to death and traumatic injuries, are things as basic as falls (middle aged men fall off ladders with surprising regularity), drownings (due to lack of safety precautions), car accidents (teens and older people tend to spike this stat), poisoning (everyone from babies eating poisonous things to people OD-ing on drugs or alcohol is included here). plus the serious results of high blood pressure (heart attack), cancer, and other diseases.
• If you are taking prescription medication, try to have a three month supply on hand. This will come in handy for traveling, for evacuating during an emergency (take the meds with you since the pharmacies in your area probably won't be open), and as a back up, if by accident, a portion of your meds gets destroyed (a friend had one bottle of meds in her emergency bag and had one bottle over the toilet in a medicine cabinet--one day as she was taking out her meds they fell from her hand into the toilet. The emergency meds meant she didn't have to call her doctor for a new prescription and run to the pharmacy immediately).
• Avoid activities that can get you maimed or killed. Sounds simple doesn't it? Apparently not to the legions of people who post their latest (dangerous) exploits on You Tube (bus surfing, drunk driving, fight club style fighting, et al). Of course there are some dangerous activities that people will do regardless of the danger (riding a motorcycle, climbing up ladders to trim trees/hang lights/clean the gutters, skateboarding) but at least if you partake in these activities, learn the safest way to accomplish them.

Basically good health comes down to common sense. The up side is that when you are in good health, responding to a disaster will be that much easier.

How Physically Fit Are You?

Physical fitness is a critical part of being prepared to deal with any disaster that occurs. With a national obesity rate that is steadily creeping towards 30%, this doesn't bode well for nearly one third of our entire population. People who are overweight or obese have problems with the very basics of helping themselves during a disaster such as exiting an airplane during an emergency landing, climbing out of a window if their home is on fire, or evacuating on foot, even if they only need to run to the nearest cross street. With that in mind, consider if you...

• Are able to swim one mile (preferably in open water)
• Are able to run five miles easily
• Can do basic calisthenics (100 push ups, 100 sit ups, 40 pull ups)
• Have a Black Belt in a martial art (karate, kung fu, judo, tae kwon do, etc)
• Are well-versed in team sports (basketball, baseball, football, volleyball soccer, etc)
• Are well-versed in water sports (polo, diving, SCUBA, water skiing)
• Are well-versed in winter sports (skiing--both downhill and cross country, snowshoeing)
• Have experience rock climbing, mountain climbing, ice climbing
• Are well-versed in balance sports (bicycling, dance, skating--both ice and roller)
• Are well-versed in individual sports (fencing, gymnastics, golf, wrestling)
• Are strong (weight lifting)
• Are flexible (stretching)

These are all important physical fitness skills to have. Of course as the population ages, the ability to do the aforementioned activities will lessen, however, any amount of physical fitness training on a regular basis will give you many added benefits when it comes to being prepared for an emergency. It may even take care of some basic health issues such as lowering cholesterol, blood pressure, and blood sugar.
If you want to begin an exercise plan, start slow. Walking to the mail box or around the block may be a good start for some people. You may also want to discuss your physical fitness plan with your doctor and get some baseline tests done in order to see how your improving physical fitness impacts your overall health. In addition, you may want to set some goals to keep yourself motivated such as walking a marathon, joining a bowling team, walking with the Volksmarchers, or even participating the the local Senior Olympics events that are common around the country.
It is never too late to start to improve your fitness level and you will probably even find that as your exercise program progresses, you will have more energy, less weight to carry around, and less aches and pains that are common as we age.

Sunday Morning Roundup: Get Healthy Edition

Good health is one of the best preparedness tools out there. You can have all of the fancy survival equipment in the world, however if your health is lousy, your odds of surviving a disaster decline drastically. Here's how to get (and stay) healthy:

• 50 Easy Ways to Lose Weight
• World's Healthiest Foods
• 42 Exercise Hacks
• Healthy Habits
• 20 Snacks that Enhance Productivity
• Hooah 4 Health
• MediterrAsian
• Oldways

Health and Fitness Online

As you know from reading other posts on this blog, health and fitness is the most important part of personal preparedness. The basics of health and fitness are pretty straight forward--exercise more and eat healthy food. Of course it is not always that simple. Working exercise into a hectic schedule is always a challenge and eating healthy food is easier said than done. I would hazard a guess that 75% of the food sold in supermarkets today is patently unhealthy. To get a grip on your health and fitness, check out the links below and follow these simple rules:

1. Exercise for an hour every day (work in strength, cardio and flexibility exercises)
2. Eat reasonable portions of fruits, vegetables, grains and protein while laying off the junk food.
3. Reduce stress.
4. Sleep eight full hours every night.
5. Drink only water as much as possible (skip the coffee, cola, alcohol, and other not-so-good-for-you drinks)

• Dr Weil
• Prevention
• Worlds Healthiest Foods
• Dr Dean Ornish
• Food Revolution
• MediterAsian
• The Science of Being Well
• Real Age
• Healthy Living TV
• Gary Null's Natural Living
• Health and Fitness Tips
• Health Food Stores
• Chet Day
• Hooah 4 Health
• Bottom Line