The need for this program is off the charts!
- Half of all U.S. adults have hypertension
- Over 37 million in the USA have diabetes
- 96 million adults have pre-diabetes
- 94 million U.S. adults have high cholesterol
- 7% of U.S.children and teens ages 6 to 19 have high total cholesterol
- Almost 43% of Americans are obese
- One third of women, and one fifth of men above 50 are at risk of osteoporosis
- Almost 40% of US adults have experienced back pain in the last 3 months
- Americans spend more on back and neck pain than any other health issue!
- Falls are the leading cause of fatal and nonfatal injuries among older adults.
- Last year, doctors wrote 123 million prescriptions for hypothyroid medications
Primary care physicians counsel their patients on the need to lose weight and exercise more, but the truth is most people have no idea where to start. There is simply not enough time available in the primary care physician's office to provide proper support and even if there were more time, couseling only goes so far.
Preventive Health Initiative's idea is simple - place a licensed health professional in a community wellness recreation center where one-on-one and small group exercise training and education can be directly provided free of charge. The health professional will have extensive knowledge of exercise interventions and the most efficient way to achieve individual client goals. Think medical professional personal trainer! Counseling and education are provided during exercise activities with the focus being on habit and lifestyle change. Interventions will be tailored to each individual as only a health professional can provide.
Areas of emphasis are the same that we provide in our office location:
- Mobility & maintaining strength while aging
- Weight loss support (metabolism, exercise, education)
- Osteoporosis support using progressive resistance exercise to strengthen bones
- Spinal support to address back, neck, and other joint pain
- Metabolic and hormonal support
Each client helped will be strongly encouraged to bring their spouse, friends, co-worker, and children in order to make getting healthy a group endeavor and as a way to reach more people in need. Education from a health professional carries much more weight than an advertisement or peer conversation, so the hope is that individuals and groups of individuals will be able to learn and share knowledge learned from this intervention with others in their communities.
Extensive progress feedback from clients will be collected on forms and questionnaires in order to determine the effectiveness of this project. Preventive Health Initiative intends to share all program information with government health agencies, cities, states, insurance companies, and other healthcare organizations who have the ability to create their own programs based on our model.
