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The prevalence of lifestyle diseases is increasing, particularly among those under the age of 45. Diabetes, obesity, heart disease, and other conditions that are common in older individuals are now also common in younger people. Sedentary lifestyles, stress, pollution, and unhealthful eating patterns are some contributing factors that result in these diseases.
While taking precautions can help prevent and control chronic diseases, most of us create health goals so that we can develop healthier habits, feel more confident, or just boost our overall wellbeing.
Here’s a fact: The state of our bodies and minds is the foundation of health.
That said, there are numerous facets to our health. According to the World Health Organization, our total well-being is influenced by our mental, physical, and social health. Everything is connected. Thus, we can’t be truly healthy if we ignore one of these areas. So, we need to set health goals prioritizing all our health areas. By making simple and healthy choices, we will be well on our way towards reducing stress, having positive social interactions and achieving optimal wellness to meet our full potential.
Unlocking your health goals requires a combination of mindset, strategy, and action. Here are some steps you can take to unlock your health goals:
- Get Clear on Your Goals: Be specific about what you want to achieve in terms of your health. Specific goals are easier to focus on. Try creating a vision statement to narrow the scope if you’re stuck. This might include “I want to lose 5 pounds,” or “I want to be able to run 21KM in marathon.”
- Identify Your Why: Understand the reasons behind your health goals. Ask yourself why these goals are important to you. Is it for your own wellbeing? For your loved ones? Or for a bigger life goal that you want to achieve?
- Create a Plan: Develop a plan that outlines the steps you need to take to achieve your goals. This should include specific actions you will take, such as changing your diet, or exercising more. Goal Examples: To meet my goal of better nutrition, I will eat raw vegetables at lunch and cooked vegetables at dinner every day starting tonight. To help me add more physical activity, I will walk to my office from the train station at least three days per week starting tomorrow.
- Take Action: Put your plan into action and take consistent steps towards your goals. This might involve making small changes to your daily routine, such as adding more vegetables to your meals or taking a walk after dinner.
- Seek Support. Your goals might be personal, but that doesn’t mean you have to go through the journey alone. Surround yourself with people who will support and encourage you on your journey. This might include friends, family members, or a health coach for support.
Speaking of support, while setting health goals can help take good care of our total well-being, dealing with an unexpected health incident can hinder you from achieving these goals. More so, critical illnesses can be difficult financially.
That is why, in today’s fast-paced lifestyle, a form of health support that protects us and our loved ones from any eventuality that could leave us financially handicapped is a must. Choosing to invest in a health plan that includes regular medical exams can help in the early detection of certain ailments and make it easier to handle medical costs, gives us one less thing to worry about. Below are reasons why having health insurance is important:
- Financial Protection: Health care expenses can be high, and a serious injury or sickness can cause a substantial financial burden very fast. Health insurance protects us against these expenditures by paying for medical treatment, hospital stays, and prescription medications.
- Access to Health Care: Medical care that could otherwise be prohibitively expensive or inaccessible is made available to people with health insurance. This enables us to get the illnesses and injuries that can keep us from being healthy treated and obtain preventive care.
- Peace of Mind: Knowing that we have health insurance can provide peace of mind, reducing stress and anxiety related to medical expenses and the potential for financial disaster.
Opting for a health insurance early in life has numerous benefits. Since you are young and healthier, you can avail plans at lower rates and the advantage will continue even as you grow older. When scouting for our ideal health insurance plan, also consider our ageing parents, who are likely to be vulnerable to illnesses, as well as dependent children. Don’t worry if you cannot afford a higher coverage plan right away. You can start low and gradually increase the cover.
Now, if you currently have health insurance (such as a plan offered by your employer), better check what it covers in detail and the extent of your coverage. Your current policy may not be adequate in times of need if it does not cover possible threats like illnesses that run in the family. Additionally, with medical treatments progressing significantly, having a bigger sum assured helps guarantee that all your medical needs are financially covered.
For many years now, Sun Life has been providing various health solutions. Sun Life offers short-term ppolicies (Sun LifeAssure, Sun First Aid, and Sun Maiden) that cover you for the moment or temporarily. And they have whole life products such as Sun Fit and Well, Sun Cancer Care, Sun Senior Care, and Sun ICU Protect. These are new generation products because they have incorporated having to be with their clients during their whole health journey. And these four products, if you purchase, you become a gold member of GoWell Studio. GoWell is Sun Life’s premier on-demand holistic wellness platform that provides health and wellness content, nutritious recipes, workout videos, informative webinars, and exciting promos and perks.
On a basic level, health insurance can mean the difference between sickness and health or even life and death. Overall, it is an important financial tool that can help maintain good health, access medical care when one needs it, protect from the financial burden of illness and injury, and help you achieve your health goals.
If you are interested in availing of health insurance policy (or just even seeking proper financial planning tips), you can also talk to a financial advisor here.
