8 goals for a healthier you

1. Goal: Eat healthier

   It's important to make good food choices and monitor portion sizes. The right diet habits can help you avoid extra pounds and disease.
   Tip: Learn the basics about nutrition so you can start making healthier food choices. Log in to priorityhealth.com. Select "Health Encyclopedia" on the left-hand side and then "N". Scroll down and click "Nutrition".

2. Goal: Manage your weight

   Obesity and weight issues are tied to heart disease, diabetes, breathing and joint problems and more.
   Tip: Ask your doctor to check your body mass index (BMI) to find out if you are a healthy weight for your height. If you're overweight, your doctor can help you make healthy lifestyle changes. One of the keys to losing weight is regular exercise (like walking briskly for 30 minutes a day).
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3. Goal: Protect against chest infections

   Children and adults can get upper respiratory infections in the fall and winter months. These are viral infections with severe coldlike symptoms, and antibiotics are useless against them.
   Tip: To prevent infections, wash your hands frequently and keep them away from your face. To prevent the spread of germs, make sure you cover your mouth and nose with a tissue or the crease of your elbow when you cough or sneeze.

4. Goal: Stay vaccinated

   Immunizations (shots) aren't just for children. Adults and kids should receive shots to help avoid getting and spreading serious diseases.
   Tip: Ask your doctor which of the following immunizations you and your children need:
   • Influenza helps protect against the flu, which can cause serious complications for those with a chronic illness or for young children. This year's flu vaccine offers protection against the seasonal flu and 2009 H1N1.
   • Hepatitis B protects against a potentially deadly liver disease.
   • Measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) protects against measles, mumps and rubella.
   • Pneumococcal protects against pneumococcal pneumonia, a potentially fatal lung infection.
   • Tetanus-diphtheria-pertussis booster protects against diphtheria, a potentially fatal bacterial infection; lockjaw, a jaw disorder; and whooping cough.
   • Varicella protects against chickenpox, an infection that can be fatal in adult men and women.
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5. Goal: Check for depression

   Depression can affect both adults and children. Factors that can lead to depression include job loss, low selfesteem, medical conditions, divorce and moving. Depression can make it hard to manage your health and any health conditions.
   Tip: Visit us online to find out the symptoms of depression. If you're experiencing signs of depression, call our Behavioral Health department at 800 673-8043 for a confidential assessment or for a referral to a behavioral health specialist.
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6. Goal: Manage diabetes

   Diabetes is a serious health issue. It's the sixth-leading cause of death among adults in Michigan.
   Tip: If you have diabetes, it's important to keep your A1c level at less than 7% and your blood pressure less than 130/80 mm Hg. It can lower your risk for diabetic retinopathy (eye disease), kidney disease, nerve damage and heart disease. Have your A1c and blood pressure checked at least every six months.
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7. Goal: Quit smoking

   Smoking is the #1 preventable cause of death and disease in the U.S. Female smoking-related deaths now outnumber deaths from breast cancer. In addition, secondhand smoke causes premature death and disease in children and adults who don't smoke.
   Tip: It's not easy to quit a habit like smoking alone. Visit our site to learn about the variety of information and resources available from Priority Health to help you quit.
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8. Goal: Take antibiotics only when necessary

   Two germs that cause the most illnesses are bacteria and viruses. Bacteria cause strep throat, some pneumonia and sinus infections. Viruses bring about bronchitis, colds, most coughs and the flu. Antibiotics can only help cure bacterial infections, not viral ones.
   Tip: Taking unnecessary antibiotics may create bacteria so strong that the drugs no longer work. These superbugs can cause serious infections that are hard to treat. Only take antibiotics when you need them and take them as directed.

Topics: Nutrition, Weight loss, Depression, Diabetes