An Once of prevention Is Worth More than a

Pound of Intervention”

....With good eating, exercise and hygienic habits we contribute great benefits to our health, but this does not guarantee us that we will not get sick since our family history also counts. Do you remember what were your grandmother’s biggest health complaints? Is there a history of diabetes , Cancer or Alzheimer's in your family? Or do you complain about all foods upsetting your stomach?

Taking all of this into account you will be able to see where it is you need to pay more attention to take care for our health, and…how well prepared are you to face a natural disaster?

When something big happens, something beyond our control, such as a natural disaster, we are all at risk and it is something in which there is no discrimination on the basis of race, color or age; we are all at risk of being affected. You might think that there will not be a tornado here, but we could have an earthquake. Have you thought about it? Are you prepared?

We are in an earthquake prone area, with the possibility of a tsunami and wildfires, but do you think that, unless it is a disaster of such magnitude, it will not affect you? What about the people who have lost their homes to a fire? Or those who lost everything to flooding without it being the result of a major natural disaster, but of an accident? And yet we are all vulnerable to accidents.

All of this is something we do not think about until we see it happen to someone else, so we should follow the advice from our County of San Diego: “the best we can do is try to be prepare” “disaster preparedness start with you”, and try to prepare for ourselves, for our loved ones, and for our entire community.

Prevention is an easy word, but how often do we do it? Perhaps we follow the guidelines for child immunizations, but later when do we ask our physician again if our child needs an additional shot? Immunizations are not exclusively for small children! The older kids, adolescents, adults and seniors must ask their physician this because we all need overall checkups every now and then, since a regular checkup helps to bring people to health care early. Then diseases can be prevented or treated successfully. Following up with the necessary shots are is another way to prevent illnesses that have been overcome and that used to cause disability or death before.

If it is mosquito season, we should be prepared for West Nile virus, which for some it might only be a matter of a small red blotch, but for others it might be the beginning of a possible disability or even death. Likewise with the flu, we should take care of ourselves adequately. If you are in the risk group, get your flu shot and take the necessary precautions so you do not come down with it. We will need to follow the doctor advice, take the necessary medications to get better and not pass it on to others.

With the holiday season, fireworks on September 15 in Mexico caused a tragedy due to the lack of prevention; a whole market went up in flames. Luckily the market had several escape exits and there were no deaths, but there were several with burns and many property losses. Likewise the Halloween and Day of the Dead (a Mexican holiday celebrated on November 2 nd ) season requires prevention measures, such as making sure that lit candles are not left unattended on altars and being careful when going trick or treating, to avoid accidents and enjoy safely.

As always, our main interest is being able to provide you the opportunity to take the necessary precautions to avoid harm that or your family might suffer because of something that could have been avoided. We believe that the old saying “better safe than sorry” should be taken seriously.

We ask that you be socially aware and, joining a common effort, let us support the humanitarian deeds that the American Red Cross, the Salvation Army and other organizations are trying to carry out in their mission to help others.

Salud+HealthInfo is for information and educational purposes only. You should not rely on this information as a substitute for personal medical attention, diagnosis or hands-on treatment. If you are concerned abut your health or that of a child, please consult your family's physician or health provider immediately and do not try to diagnose yourself. Copyright © 2001-2015