Understanding Risk Factors

What to Know & What You Can Do

“An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” ~Benjamin Franklin   

When it comes to prevention, we have the power to take some action. Risk factors are classified as modifiable or non-modifiable and the modifiable ones are where our power lies.

Non-Modifiable - ‘It is What it Is’. Things like age, race, and family history/genetics fall into the non-modifiable risk category. In other words, these are set characteristics and cannot be changed. That being said, it’s important to note these things and understand how each may impact your risk for certain conditions.

Let’s move on to those modifiable risk factors; the ones we have some control over. (Yes, I am passive aggressively encouraging you to take some action in these areas.) Modifiable risk factors are areas where investing time and effort can bring nice return on investment. We can improve our health and reduce our risk for diseases and conditions like diabetes, hypertension (high blood pressure), high cholesterol, heart disease and COVID to name a few.  

*Smoking - Okay, so most of us know this one. Smoking is bad for us and we should quit. I also want to acknowledge that this might be the one thing getting you through right now. But if you are thinking about quitting, I invite you to explore strategies to see what might be the best option for you and, if at first you don’t succeed, well, you know. Maybe quitting isn’t on the table for you at this point—good news, there might be other areas where you are ready to make some changes which can have a positive impact on your health.

*Weight Management - Achieving and maintaining a healthy weight can be an important piece of overall health. I recommend discussing your healthy weight range with your doctor. A healthy weight doesn’t equate to six pack abs. If you are overweight, a mere 5% weight loss can begin to reduce your risk for many conditions. For example, if you are overweight at 200 lbs, losing just 10 lbs can be beneficial for your health and reduce risks.

*Diet - How are you nourishing your body? Take the time to assess what you are putting in your body and making small changes to better nourish your body can have a positive impact on your health. If you are considering “going on a diet” check out “5 Questions to Ask Yourself When Considering a Diet”.

*Physical Activity - Many of us typically think of physical activity as going to the gym or “exercise” and while it can be accomplished this way, if the gym or traditional exercise isn’t to your liking, consider thinking outside the box. Explore ways to find ‘movement’ that are enjoyable to you and remember when it comes to activity, a little bit of something is better than a whole lot of nothing. The Centers for Disease Control & Prevention recommends 150 minutes of physical activity each week or 30 minutes 5 days a week. This can be a great goal to work towards and may also feel a bit overwhelming. Start with what you can manage consistently—this might be 5 minutes a day. Find something you can do with consistency AND is enjoyable.

*Sleep - This modifiable factor, and the next one, are often overlooked or undervalued when it comes to the effects on our health. Sleep is one of the many ways our body recharges mentally and physically and when we don’t get enough, it can make life feel a bit more challenging (including the previous factors). In general, the Mayo Clinic recommends adults get at least 7 hrs of sleep each night. Are you promoting good sleep and what does your sleep hygiene look like?

*Stress Management - This one is a big one in my opinion and it can be a bit tricky because unlike the other factors, it can be difficult to quantify. For my fellow research nerds, Health Psychology Open published this article that explores stress, how we measure it, and the effects of it. If you’re looking for simple way to assess your stress, the Perceived Stress Scale might offer a good place to start. We can’t eliminate all stress. Most of us can probably reduce it and we can develop healthy ways to cope with what remains. The American Heart Association offers these 3 Tips to Manage Stress. Intentional breathing exercises (future blog in the works) are one of my favorite in-the-moment stress coping mechanisms. Putting efforts into the above areas can also help with how we manage stress.

Now we’ve covered risk factors to be aware of and identified the ones where we hopefully feel empowered to create some positive changes. It’s not an all or nothing. If it seems a bit overwhelming or a lot overwhelming, take a deep breath and pick one thing in one of the modifiable areas that you might put effort into today. Maybe it’s aiming to go to bed at the same time each night, pausing to take some intentional deep breaths when you feel your stress rising, or taking a 5 minute walk after dinner 3 nights this week. Every effort counts! Not sure where to start, let’s chat.