Health care pros say the big three health issues affecting many residents in Muskogee County are obesity, tobacco use, and lack of physical activity. All are behaviors, not diseases.
But, these behaviors lead to cancer, stroke, diabetes and heart disease.
Despite the danger of disease, all of the big three can be difficult to overcome.
Phaedra Herren, 36, battled with tobacco for 21 years before getting control.
"I started when I was 15 years old," she said. "I think I was at that age where it was about being part of the crowd. It was the 1980s. We smoked when we got together, and it became a habit. Through high school I just smoked at parties."
Herren's problem was that her habit was allowing a need for nicotine to take root in her brain.
"By the time I was 17 I was smoking on a regular basis; it is an addiction," she said. "It is just like a drug except it is legal. People die every day from it."
Even if you don't have a problem with any of the big three negative health behaviors, the chances are that you are affected by someone who does.
Dr. Jim Baker, medical director at Care ATC, a mobile health care business, gave an example.
"You may not be obese, use tobacco, or get too little physical activity," he said. "But if your uncle does and has a major stroke, and you become the major caregiver, your life is changed forever."
Baker talked about the dynamics of how behaviors become entrenched.
"With eating, taste is learned, so when the meal preparer of the household fixes a meal, that person eating that meal will usually go back to that flavor because it is familiar," he said. "And that's a real problem if the parents have driven the kids to a fast-food restaurant and they get them a burger and fries. That's what children will ask for. And so when people begin to eat on their own, and you expose them to flavors they have come to know and love, it becomes very difficult to put alternatives in front of them. It's not impossible, but it is something that you have to struggle with.
Parental influence also is a major factor in the perpetuation of tobacco use.
"The secondhand smoke issue is just tremendous," Baker said. "And if kids see parents smoke, certainly they are going to be more prone to take up the habit. Children really do watch their parents. They'll do anything for attention. If that means taking up negative habits, then that's what they'll do."
Baker said intervening in the handing-down of destructive behaviors is essential to stopping tobacco use.
"If dad dips tobacco, that little boy is going to grow up to be just like dad, and he's going to want to dip, too," he said. "So we need to let those parents know that they really need to stop. That if they really want to end the habits of tobacco use and early lung cancer and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and all the problems that go with tobacco use, they need to look at trying to stop the habits for themselves. What we need to do is put our parents or primary caretakers in situations that are going to make them successful."
Behavior changes don't have to be difficult and can be a source of pleasure, Baker said.
"As far as exercise, if the family times their walk together, or takes the dog for a walk and each family member is there, that's going to become an enjoyable exercise," he said.
Exercise then becomes associated with good feelings the make it easier to maintain regular physical activity.
"So a child is going to want to reproduce that later in life," he said. "Basically their parents have taught them exercise by that. It's a very simple thing to do. If you make it a pleasant moment, then you have captured that to where it's something expected. That's the kind of behaviors we need to see in society and especially in Muskogee where we are sedentary and predisposed to obesity, diabetes and heart attacks."
Jane Jones, program coordinator for Muskogee Against Tobacco at the Muskogee County Health Department, said obesity affects more than 25 percent of Muskogee County citizens.
"It has to do with our busy lifestyles that keep us from cooking at home and making the healthier choices," she said. "It's certainly the availability of fast food, and sometimes we're so busy that that's what we choose. It's some of those higher calorie and higher fat options. We tend not to choose fruits and vegetables just because of preferences we may have grown up with or the influences of people around us."
Jones said obesity is the second leading contributor to death in our county, with tobacco being No. 1. But tobacco is decreasing, and obesity tends to be increasing.
"But it's still about 26 percent of the county uses tobacco products," she said. "We know that most people start when they are teenagers, and then, because it is so addictive, spend the next few decades trying to quit."
Jones said the state health department has prioritized tobacco and then obesity and lack of physical activity in terms of developing programs and educational materials. The goal is to encourage Oklahomans to really look at those issues because of the effects they can have in so many aspects of their health.
The changing nature of careers and society have resulted in the majority of people being physically unfit.
"The causes of lack of exercise are that our work is more sedentary," Jones said. "We work long hours, so it's difficult to find time for activity. We're a very automobile-oriented culture, and there are not that many sidewalks. We need at least 30 minutes each day, but it may be easier for a mom to carve out 10 minutes at a time rather than do it all at once. We need a daily routine, and one way to do that is to make it a part of our regular schedule."
Jones said that the health department has shifted its priorities from looking at specific diseases to the overriding causes of behaviors.
"I think behaviors used to always be a part of public health but now we're looking at it in a new way; creating an environment and a culture that promotes health," she said. "So we're working with communities where we're not just focusing on one individual but working with the population as a whole so we can create a place is an environment that promotes health."
What you can do
--If you need help quitting tobacco, call the free cessation service at (800) QUIT-NOW or (800) 784-8669.
--If you need help with obesity or increasing your physical activity, start with your doctor to find out options that are safe and effective.
Reach Keith Purtell at 918-684-2925 or Click Here to Send Email To see more of the Muskogee Phoenix or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.muskogeephoenix.com. Copyright (c) 2009, Muskogee Phoenix, Okla. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.
Copyright (C) 2009, Muskogee Phoenix, Okla.