Identify how
Every day you are faced with some degree of risk. Simple events, such as crossing a street or using electrical appliances, carry a degree of risk. Being aware of certain risks to your health is part of becoming an adult. Risk behaviors are actions that can potentially threaten your health or the health of others. It’s important to recognize that you can control most risk behaviors. By understanding the risks associated with certain behaviors, you can make safe and responsible decisions about which risks to avoid. In this way, you actively protect and promote your health.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has identified six risk behaviors that account for most of the deaths and disability among young people under age 24.
These risk behaviors can lead to heart disease, cancer, and other serious illnesses later in life:
Tobacco use
Unhealthy dietary behaviors
Inadequate physical activity
Alcohol and other drug use
Sexual behaviors that may result in HIV infection, other sexually transmitted diseases, and unintended pregnancies
Behaviors that contribute to unintentional injuries and violence
Risk behaviors can have a serious impact to your health. In other words, these behaviors carry significant consequences. Both the short-term and long-term consequences can harm your health and well-being. Some risk behaviors can even be fatal. Before you engage in risk behaviors, it’s important to evaluate the consequences. For example, smoking can have immediate health consequences, such as bad breath, yellow teeth, and headaches. If a person continues to smoke, the long-term consequences can include lung cancer, emphysema, and heart disease.
Risks can also add up over time. Cumulative risks are related risks that increase in effect with each added risk. Eating an occasional high fat meal at a fast-food restaurant probably won’t permanently affect your overall health. If you regularly eat high fat meals, though, the negative effects accumulate over time and may lead to serious health problems.
Â
Cumulative risks also increase when several risk factors are combined. Â For example, using a cell phone while driving carries risks. So does speeding. If an individual engages in both of these risk behaviors, the chance of getting into a car accident becomes even greater. The more risk behaviors you participate in, the more likely you are to experience negative consequences.
INQUIRY
/INQUIRY
Main Idea: You can take action to reduce your exposure to health risks.
You can protect your health and minimize the possibility of risk by practicing positive health behaviors. Many of your automatic safety checks, wearing a safety belt when you get into a car, checking the depth of water before diving, or wearing a helmet when riding a bike are positive health behaviors. Another way to reduce health risks is through prevention.
This means taking steps to keep something from happening or getting worse. Prevention includes getting regular medical and dental checkups. Checkups can detect health problems early, thus preventing them from getting worse.
One of the most effective strategies for protecting your health is practicing abstinence. Abstinence is a deliberate decision to avoid high-risk behaviors, including sexual activity and the use of tobacco, alcohol, and other drugs.
All areas of your health triangle benefit when you choose to abstain from high-risk behaviors. For example, when you avoid tobacco, alcohol, and other drugs, you protect yourself from the chronic diseases associated with using these substances. You also feel good about yourself, which strengthens your mental/emotional health and your social relationships.
When you abstain from high-risk behaviors, you show that you value your well-being. You demonstrate maturity by taking responsibility for your health and playing an active role in maintaining your wellness.
Main Idea:Â Regularly participating in health-promoting behaviors will help you reach a high level of wellness.
Every day you make decisions, large and small, that affect your health. For example, if you choose to play a sport after school, you are likely to have fun and feel energized. If you choose to play video games instead, you may end up feeling sluggish because you didn’t get enough physical activity.
Understanding how your decisions impact your health will inspire you to adopt healthful behaviors that can promote wellness and prevent the development of disease.
Lifestyle factors are the personal habits or behaviors related to the way a person lives. Scientists have found that these habits make a difference in people’s overall health, happiness, and longevity. In other words, people who practice positive health habits regularly tend to be healthier and live longer. Lifestyle factors that can improve a person’s level of health include
getting eight hours of sleep each night.
starting each day with a healthy breakfast.
eating a variety of nutritious foods each day.
being physically active for 30 to 60 minutes most days of the week.
maintaining a healthy weight.
abstaining from smoking or using other tobacco products.
abstaining from the use of alcohol and other drugs.
Think about your daily habits. Do you regularly practice the lifestyle factors listed above? Can you think of ways to incorporate more of these behaviors into your daily routine? Remember, you have control over your lifestyle. By making the best possible decisions for yourself, you can achieve a high level of wellness now and into adulthood.
© 2020-2025. All Rights Reserved.