Cause and effect

If you had a nasty food allergy, you would avoid eating the food that triggers a reaction at all costs. We can clearly see an immediate cause and effect in these situations, so we alter our behavior to avoid them. Of course. Only an insane person would choose to do otherwise.

Given the above, why do so many people choose to ignore the cause and effect of poor nutrition, overeating, lack of exercise, smoking and excessive drinking? I read something the other day that was shocking. Nearly 1 million people die annually in the United States due to heart and circulatory system diseases. Diabetes takes an additional toll. We know our behaviors are harmful, yet we do nothing to change them. It is truly shocking. Although we are an intelligent people, our mind does think in illogical ways at times. The way our harmful activities adversely affect our bodies is a very slow process, allowing us to mentally uncouple the cause and effect in our minds. Even though we KNOW we are hurting ourselves, intuitively, it feels as if we aren’t. So we continue what we are doing. We continue until we are lucky enough to get a wakeup call, or we get sick of being unable to physically perform certain tasks, or we get sick of looking at ourselves, or we have a near death experience, or, worst case, we die. Often, even people who have some sort of epiphany revert back to past behavior at some point. Frequently, family members derail the efforts of someone trying to get healthy. Cause and effect is not always an immediate thing. We should take care to actively remember that.

We also make the mistake of equating how we look with how healthy we are. Being thin or toned does not mean we are healthy. Being fit involves proper nutrition and exercise. It involves possessing a level of musculature that allows us to enjoy day to day activities in a reasonable fashion. Most of us have jobs that require us to be sedentary for hours on end. We must ensure that we set aside time to do what our bodies were designed to do. Move. Walk. Run. Jump. Pick up heavy stuff. Challenge ourselves. And we must do it on a regular basis. We must ensure that we provide our bodies the proper building blocks to rebuild themselves over and over during the course of our lifetimes. We must limit our intake of empty calories that only serve to destroy our bodies. We must make the connection between our behavior and our health. We need to make that connection every day. Our lives literally depend upon it.