The Five Pillars of Wellness and Prevention

Wellness and prevention includes many things, from personal actions including diet, exercise and not smoking to benefit structures that incentivize chronic disease management, regular doctor visits and health screenings. Iowans for Wellness & Prevention believes the health care system should be reoriented to support these healthy, preventative measures to increase people's quality of life and reduce overall health care costs.

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC), and other reputable health organizations have recommended guidelines for healthy living. IWP encourages individuals to take responsibility for their own health by working with their doctors to develop a plan for following these recommendations. Employers can help their employees strive toward being healthier and increase their quality of life by providing education, screenings and working to ensure that benefit plans encourage proper health management and recognize the importance of wellness and prevention.

IWP believes there are five key pillars for personal wellness and prevention:

Health Screenings: Health screenings are important to living a healthy life because they can help detect problems early. This is an essential component of preventive health care.

The CDC recommends that total cholesterol be less than 200mg/dL, triglycerides be less than 150 mg/dL, and that blood pressure be less than 120/80 [i].

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommends regular cancer screenings [ii] for breast, cervical, and colorectal cancer. For breast cancer, a mammography screening every 1-2 years for women over 40 is recommended. To prevent cervical cancer, pap tests are recommended at least every 3 years for women over 21. Regular colorectal cancer screenings are recommended for men and women over the age of 50.

Smoking Cessation: Nicotine addiction is a chronic, relapsing medical condition. The CDC recognizes the importance of a comprehensive approach to tobacco cessation, which includes interaction with health care providers and/or counseling, and over-the-counter or prescription medications [iii]. The CDC has also promoted recommendations for tobacco cessation benefit coverage [iv]. The recommendations were developed by the Community Preventive Services Task Force and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Service's Clinical Practice Guideline: Treating Tobacco Use and Dependence. The recommendations call for all insurers to provide: coverage of "at least four counseling sessions of at least 30 minutes each," with reduced or no co-pay; coverage of over the counter and prescribed treatments, with reduced or no co-pay and coverage "for at least two smoking cessation attempts per year".

Immunizations: Immunizations are important for infants and children, but also for adults. The Partnership for Prevention recently released a study that indicates an additional 12,000 lives would be saved every year if 905 of adults over the age of 50 are immunized annually for influenza [v]. Individuals should work with their health care providers to follow current recommended immunization schedules.

Body Mass Index: The CDC recommends that a person's BMI be less than 25 [vi]. BMI and other biometric measures, such as waist circumference, are indicators of poor health. Being overweight or obese can increase risk for heart disease, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, stroke, and other health problems.

Exercise: Exercise is important part of wellness and prevention. Exercise will help keep individuals at healthy weight and blood pressure, and is good for overall heart health. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recommends "at least 30 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity" on most days [vii].