“Think outside
box!” These words show up in commercials, boardrooms, operating rooms and casual conversations. They have become calling card of young creative hotshot trying to secure an impressive position in a choice company. They mark inventive thinker and condemn one doing everything in same old fashion. For most part we live in a world where new is better and change in and of itself is considered a good thing.But there are some boxes in which our thinking seems to be locked. I have in mind one particular box which conforms us to idea that health is a matter of fixing problems after they present themselves. There is no doubt that medical science has advanced at a remarkable rate. We are daily finding cures for diseases that have plagued us for all history. But medical science is not savior of careless living. It is time to think outside box of waiting until there is an evident problem before we do anything about it. Or perhaps it is more accurate to say that we should return to box that says, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.”
One case in point, among many others, is demonstrated by rise in heart disease in developed and developing countries. In particular to this article is increase in incidence of congestive heart failure. Congestive heart failure is not so much a disease as it is end result of heart degradation. Sometimes cause is not known. But most often it is caused by one or more long-term ailments that stress heart to point that it simply can not function properly.
Here is an example. Perhaps a patient has lived with elevated blood pressure for many years. Long-term hypertension is one of leading causes of CHF. The patient might make some efforts to reduce his blood pressure but is not overly concerned about it. After all, we live in a high speed world. Hypertension is common among hard working. It becomes an acceptable part of every day living in modern world.
But high blood pressure is one common condition that works for years to wear on cardiovascular system resulting in a number of serious ailments, not least of which is congestive heart failure. The fact that something does not kill us in a week does not logically imply that it will not kill us. Hypertension causes heart to work harder ultimately weakening it over time. The weakening of heart coupled with a vascular system not conducive to efficiently transporting blood due to hypertension and atherosclerosis (clogging of arteries) can only lead to trouble. The heart gets to point that it simply can not keep up with work load. The patient then turns to medical science for a cure; or perhaps a miracle. Twenty years of neglect, and even abuse, is expected to fade away with swallowing of a few pills.
The blood pressure example is just that, an example. Atherosclerosis is another. Atherosclerosis comes from Greek words athero (meaning gruel or paste) and sclerosis (meaning hardness). The combination of two meanings provides a rather gruesome picture of a hard paste (plaque) being deposited in our blood vessels. Not a pretty sight from any angle. When plaque buildup sufficiently restricts blood flow to major organs serious repercussions can occur not least of which is heart attach, stroke or long-term congestive heart failure.
It is believed by many scientists that atherosclerosis begins when damage occurs to innermost layer of artery. Such damage can be caused by high levels of cholesterol and triglycerides, high blood pressure, smoking, diabetes and obesity. It stands to reason, then, that controlling these conditions can go a long way toward reducing effects of atherosclerosis and, by logical inference, congestive heart failure.
