What to Do If You’re At Risk for A Chronic Health Condition

Throughout your life, your primary care provider is there to provide detailed evaluations and ongoing support for your health. They evaluate you when you’re sick and healthy, learning more about your health and habits with every visit. A family practitioner is an excellent choice of primary care provider because they’re familiar with how you function at every age. 

At Healthy Life Family Medicine, a family-owned and operated practice in Goodyear, Arizona, board-certified physician John Monroe, MD, encourages his patients to make their health a priority at every age. He provides chronic care for diseases and can also help you review your health risks to avoid chronic diseases in the future. 

Finding out you’re at an increased risk of a chronic illness can feel shocking, but it should motivate you to make health-oriented changes. 

Educate yourself first

Learning about your chronic health condition risks can help you prepare. Dr. Monroe can offer valuable resources so you get accurate information regarding a particular chronic illness and learn the earliest signs. 

Informational materials can also fill you in on what to expect from treatment if you ever need it. With more knowledge, you won’t have as much uncertainty or stress regarding your health. 

Reviewing and altering habits

Most people have at least one or two unhealthy habits, but they lack the motivation to change. Finding out you’re at risk of a chronic health condition is an opportunity to take inventory of your bad habits, including:

• Smoking 
• Drinking alcohol
• Using illicit drugs
• Living a sedentary lifestyle 
• Neglecting preventive health care
• Consuming too many saturated fats, sugar, and other unhealthy dietary factors

Though you can’t control every risk factor for chronic diseases, like your family history, changing behaviors you can control makes a significant difference in lowering your risk of chronic illnesses like heart disease, obesity, type 2 diabetes, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). 

But it’s not always easy to change your habits. Fortunately, with expert guidance from Dr. Monroe, you can create a plan of action to break bad habits for good.

Focus on a balanced diet

You might be surprised by the wellness improvements that come with adopting a more balanced diet. When you meet your body’s nutritional needs, you greatly lower your risk for diseases and dysfunction.

Poor nutrition is more common than you might think. In fact, just one in ten adults and adolescents include enough fruits and veggies in their diet. Dr. Monroe can help you build a nutritional plan to reduce your blood pressure and lower your risks of other chronic health conditions. 

Evaluate your risk factors today

Chronic health conditions can affect anyone. Fortunately, you can mitigate your risk. Schedule a visit to Healthy Life Family Medicine by phone or online today to get personalized tips for chronic disease prevention from board-certified physician Dr. Monroe.