These past couple of years, if nothing else, should have taught us the importance of doubling down on our health. In many cases, COVID has exposed a major weakness we have as a society, and that is poor health. As a Fredonia chiropractor let’s look at a few stats. According to the CDC, approximately 659,000 Americans die of heart disease every year. That is roughly 1 in 4 deaths. 42% of adult Americans are now considered obese, costing the United States roughly $147 billion in medical costs per year. 20% of children in the United States are also considered obese, which is so sad. This brings me to my main point…

We need to start educating kids at an early age about the importance of taking ownership of their health. Teach them how to feed and nourish their body. Why some foods will cause harm, and others will cause health. How to listen and tune in to the needs of your body and the significance of the mind, body, spirit connection. The importance of moving it on a regular basis, and how damaging too much sitting can be. These are all simple things, but all too often are being left out right now.

Most importantly, we need to teach kids how AMAZING the body is and was designed to be. Don’t be scared of your body, an illness, or disease. Our body is an incredibly intelligent, self-regulating organism. You were given a perfectly designed immune system, that when cared for well, will thrive and keep you healthy. We also need them to understand that if something isn’t going well inside our body, it means something needs to be tended to in our lifestyle. Teach them to be responsible.

Good health doesn’t happen by chance, but unfortunately, the actions of many adults are letting children think that it is the case. We certainly need to teach children with words, but almost more importantly we need to teach with our actions. Let’s do better. Be a good health role model for the next generation, so they too can…

LIVE well. BE well.