Halloween and Health

In deference to the holiday, today's post will be of a slightly different nature than the usual fare -- a slightly different tone before we return to election mania.

Preventative medicine is vitally important. That is something that I believe few will quibble with. Emergency rooms are expensive; that has also been well established. Chronic conditions such as obesity and type 2 diabetes absorb a huge amount of the funds in the health care system, an amount that proper prior behavior can reduce drastically. And Halloween? Halloween is just fun, right?

Like all good things there is dark side to Halloween, and I am not just talking hordes of kids on a massive sugar buzz. The Center for Disease Control has a page up on their web site that details a wide array of health and safety tips ranging from "be careful with toy swords," to advice on substituting health snacks for candy. It's comparatively short and presented as a bullet list, but a good starting point.

The one I really got the most out of this season was a piece by Samara Felesky-Hunt, for The Calgary Herald. Since massive snowdrifts of candy are about to blow through homes across the country her tips for reducing the impact are well timed.

[...] for now, you're dealing with the candy. Here are a few tricks to have up your sleeve before your kids are out of the door on the Halloween neighbourhood prowl.

Have a healthy dinner first. Having a well-balanced dinner with lots of veggies sets the tone for the whole evening. If you send them out with their tummies full, they're less likely to eat candy along the whole way. A healthy dinner -- or even a quick peanut butter sandwich with carrot sticks -- will help to prevent sugar highs and nasty tummy aches later.

The list goes on and is worth a look. You can strike a blow against diabetes, obesity, and sugar fueled hyperactivity all at once. (Hint: look under Sources below.)

SOURCE: "CDC- Halloween Health and Safety Tips" 10/08
SOURCE: "Halloween doesn't have to be unhealthy" 10/30/08
photo courtesy of C.J. Sorg, used under its Creative Commons license

Report: Community Based Prevention = Health Cost Savings

Prevention is generally acknowledged as a key factor in fighting chronic health issues. I don't think there is anyone who would dispute the fact that quitting smoking, while incredibly hard to do, vastly reduces your chances of lung cancer among other nasty illnesses. (I pick smoking as my example here because I am on day 22 without nicotine right now.)

Since these chronic issues consume so much of the expenditures made on health care, it is only natural that prevention should come to the fore as we attempt to craft a new system. As obesity and diabetes statistics skyrocket this becomes more and more obvious. What is interesting is a new report that has just been released which addresses a species of prevention not often spoken of in debates: Community-Based Disease Prevention.

Via MarketWatch:

In its report - commissioned by The California Endowment -- entitled Prevention for a Healthier California: Investments in Disease Prevention Yield Significant Savings, Stronger Communities, the Trust for America's Health (TFAH) and Prevention Institute and the Urban Institute find that an investment of just $10 per person per year in proven community-based disease prevention programs to increase physical activity, improve nutrition, and prevent smoking and other tobacco use could save California's health care system more than $1.7 billion within five years. This represents a return of $4.80 for every dollar spent.

Furthermore, in 10-20 years the savings could grow to more than $1.9 billion annually, which would be a return of $5.40 for every $1 invested.

Wow. Encouraging numbers. Granted, like most things, implementation is a whole different ball game, but it still provides a goal to shoot for. One thing is confusing though. What exactly is "Community-Based" disease prevention?

Community-based disease prevention programs are things that impact health outside of the doctor's office, such as planning communities to have sidewalks to encourage walking; keeping school athletic facilities open after normal school hours so that youth have a safe haven to engage in physical activity; making fresh fruits and vegetables easily available in communities where there are few or no supermarkets; and implementing local ordinances that prohibit smokers from lighting up in public areas, among many others.

I have no trouble seeing the positive effect such measures could have on both individual health care and on the collective financial bottom line. Of course, much like herding cats, it will be an adventure getting the majority of people to actually utilize or participate in these programs, options and efforts once they are in place.

As always the variable is human behavior, although with so much to gain if may well be possible. I guess we will have to wait and see.

SOURCE: "Report Finds Community-Based Disease Prevention Saves California Money and Improves Californians' Health" 10/23/08
photo courtesy of kcjc009, used under its Creative Commons license

New Year's Health Care Reform Roundup

Welcome to our first health care news roundup of 2008! Most of the health care news lately has been about the politics of reform. From mandates in Massachusetts to the floor of the California State Capitol there is no lack of news on the subject. With that in mind we would like to share a small sampling of health care in the media as we end the first week of the New Year.

Lets start in Iowa, the land of the caucus. CNN brings us text and video about Kathy Strangli, an Iowa voter who is dying of an incurable lung disease called lymphangioleiomyomatosis. She is devoting her final days to changing U.S. health care and has been grilling candidates on the subject across the state of Iowa to do it. So far she has confronted all but two presidential hopefuls on the subject and has attended more than 70 campaign events to do so.
[Story] [Video]

Next stop is California, a state that has held a high profile in the news as Governor Schwarzenegger and the state legislature have wrestled with implementing universal healthcare. Aliza Marcus over at Bloomberg takes a good hard look at Schwarzenegger's battle for health care reform and the lessons it holds for U.S. Presidential candidates.
[Story]

Then we turn our attention to the East Coast of the U.S. The Business Review brings us the scoop on New York Governor Eliot Spitzer's decree to his Health Commissioner and his Insurance Superintendent that they have until May 31 to concoct a plan for universal coverage in New York state.
[Story]

As we move along the coast we find the Boston Globe reporting on Vermont Governor Jim Douglas who is aiming his efforts at preventative medicine. To be specific he is attacking obesity, a major contributor to "more than 15 chronic conditions." The details will be released during his State of the State address next week, but the Globe article gives a basic overview of the plan (adding prevention specialists, allocation of grant money, among other features).
[Story]

Our last stop on this virtual tour is in New Hampshire, the next state to fall under the media microscope now that the Iowa caucuses are finished. As the various contenders for the White House prepare to converge on the state the International Association of Dental and Medical Disciplines (IADMD) has issued a press release calling on the candidates to get input from actual doctors when formulating their approaches to health care reform.

"Health care is such an important issue the candidates should be listening to the IADMD doctors that have the medical training to solve the crisis. I commend Hillary Clinton, John Edwards, Mitt Romney and Barack Obama for talking about health care. But their plans are not viable for many reasons, such as cost and their non-doctor approach," says Dr. Ryan.

Dr. John J. Ryan is the founder of the IADMD and a New Hampshire based family dentist.
[Press Release]

That's all for now, see you next week!

SOURCE: "Schwarzenegger's Health Battle Carries Warning for Candidates " 01/04/08
SOURCE: "Businesses warm to idea of universal health care" 01/04/08
SOURCE: "Governor wants to fight obesity with grants and specialists" 01/03/08
SOURCE: " Dying Iowa voter grills candidates on health care" 01/03/08
SOURCE: "Press Release: New Hampshire Doctors Group Challenges Presidential Candidates on Universal Health Care" 01/04/08

photo courtesy of Benimoto, used under this Creative Commons license