Better health choices mean savings, better quality of life for South Carolinians

e-mail this story discuss this issue in our forums Guest column • Larry Candler: Same-sex marriage is about fairness, equality (03/01/04) • Bo Russell: Deregulating BellSouth would shortchange customers (02/29/04) • Darla Moore and Michael Porter: Auto research park proves state is globally competitive (02/28/04) • Joyce Fishman Klein: While adults are arguing, teens are getting pregnant (02/27/04) • Dan Dorroh: Budget cuts for Clemson threaten area programs (02/26/04) More details Jenny Sanford is first lady of South Carolina. She graduated from Georgetown University with a bachelor's degree in finance and worked for Lazard Freres & Co. in New York City. Over the past 10 years she has balanced raising a family, managing her husband's political campaigns and being active in the community.

Consider that 1 in 3 Americans born in 2000 will develop Type 2 diabetes. In South Carolina, where we rank ninth in the nation in deaths from diabetes, those lifetime risks are probably even higher. And yet, lifestyle changes, including diet and moderate physical activity such as walking 2½ hours each week, can reduce the incidence of diabetes by 58 percent.

Consider also that 1 in 2 males and 1 in 3 females will develop cancer. In South Carolina, 20 die each day from cancer. While cancer and many other chronic diseases are multi-causal, it is estimated that 90,000 cancer deaths each year are due primarily to being overweight. Physical activity can reduce one's risk of colon cancer by 50 percent and simply walking 3 hours per week can reduce even an older woman's risk of getting breast cancer by 18 percent, and yet roughly a third of our state engages in no physical activity whatsoever.

Consumption of fruits and vegetables is positively correlated with cancer and is shown to protect against cardiovascular disease in a number of ways, and yet, 75 percent of South Carolinians do not eat the recommended daily amount of these essential foods.

As parents, Mark and I strive daily to teach our boys how important it is to exercise regularly and eat well, yet we often feel as if we are swimming upstream. The average American child today spends 5½ hours per day in front of a screen. Where I used to bike to school, most children today are driven or bused. In a matter of decades, our entire culture has changed and as a society we now eat more and do less.

While "convenient," this cultural shift to inactivity has far-reaching implications from a financial as well as a moral perspective. We spend well over $1 billion each year in hospitalizing patients in this state with heart disease, cancer, stroke and diabetes and billions more in indirect costs.

And morally? If we no longer consider the body as "the temple" or that we should "prosper and be in health as your soul prospers," then what does that say about the value we place on life and on longevity? Why work on building a child's character if you are not also teaching him how to live a long and healthy life so that character can flourish?

Physical activity and good nutrition were built into my childhood days because there were really few other options. Today, there are many. While my mother sent me outside to play and be active every day, she never told me that it was important that I be active daily for the rest of my life even though she set that example herself. But our parents didn't know then what we know now. It's so easy to get immersed in one's job, one's family, one's life that a daily routine is forgotten or put aside for another day.

Since our work no longer involves regular activity, it is important for us to work that activity into our routines. I used to think I could not exercise because I didn't like running. But I love to walk, play tennis and can kick a soccer ball with my boys. There are many ways for me to work physical activity into my day that can be fun, therapeutic or mind-clearing as with a walk in the park or at the beach.

I am passionate about teaching our sons about the importance of eating well and living an active life so that they are protected from premature death from cancer, diabetes, heart disease or stroke. Mark's bike ride across the state is another part of that effort, one geared at raising overall awareness in this state of the importance of being responsible for our own health and well being and about taking needed steps toward chronic disease prevention.

Please join us on our ride or undertake your own ride or walk in your neighborhood. Whatever you do, strive to make it fun, invite a friend and make it an important part of your daily life.