12 Action Steps to Stop the Culture of Chronic Disease

One of Mike Huckabee's most important messages in his White House campaign is about the need for a paradigm shift when it comes to healthcare in this country. Rather than focusing on TREATING ailments, he advocates making every effort at PREVENTING them in the first place. Here are some ways to do this on a personal level:

1. Don't smoke. Period. (Ok, no problem so far.)

2. Excercise a minimum of 3 times a week, at least 30 minutes per session. (Ooops, problem.)

3. Set specific, challenging, but realistic fitness goals for the month and year. (Now, there's a new concept.)

4. Eliminate processed sugar from your diet as much as possible, if not totally. (But, pure cane sugar is still okay?!)

5. Don't eat anything with partially-hydrogenated vegetable oil ("trans fat"). (So, I can go back to good old-fashioned butter!)

6. Eat 5 servings of fruits and vegetables per day. (Do they have to be FRESH?)

7. Insist on only whole-grain bread, pasta, and cereal. (Bread will be easy, but pasta?!)

8. Eliminate fried foods from your diet. (Oh, boy.)

9. Look for ways to become an empowered health consumer. (This is kind of a nebulous suggesttion.)

10. Regularly read articles and books on health and fitness. (I can do that.)

11. Do little things like taking the stairs instead of elevators, parking at the far end of the parking lot, or walking to do errands. (Easier said than don, but ok.)

12. Sleep more! (I LOVE THIS ONE!)