Running head: RISK REDUCTION

Risk Reduction
Courtney Wright
Ferris State University

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Health Assessment and Risk Reduction

There are many factors that contribute to our overall health
including nutrition, exercise, staying out of the sun and having healthy
relationships. When you think about your overall health you may look
at it as being very good or very bad. The truth is there are always
areas in ones health that are successful and others that need room for
improvement. SS took the real age test online to determine what
health factors are successful and what factors are the ones that leave
room for improvement in her life (Roizen, 2013). This test asks a series
of questions to gain an understanding of SSs daily life when it comes
to her health. At the end of the test it formulates an opinion on your
real age verses your age. The contributing factors to your real age
have to do with the lifestyle choices you make. The test not only gives
you your real age, but also gives you pointers on the different health
factors in your life that need improvement. It also encourages you to
keep up with the areas of your health that you have been successful
with.
Positive Health Practices
SS has many positive health practices, so many that her real
age test determined that she was 4.2 years younger than her actual
age (Roizen, 2013). One of the main elements that keep her real life
age down is her stress management. Whether there is a pharmacology
test next week or three papers due, being in nursing school there is
always something to keep your stress levels high. SS has a good

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handle on her stress by staying organized and keeping a positive

attitude. Stress is a normal response, but should go away after a short
period of time. The way stress works is your brain perceives the
situation as a threat and hormones are released. This process is known
as fight-or-flight. After what causes the stress is gone, the body
should return back to normal. The problem is with individuals who have
nonstop stress; their body is never able to return back to normal. This
leads to serious health problems, potentially leading to relationship
damage and a decrease in quality of life (Mayo Clinic, 2015).
Fortunately for SS she manages her stress very well and that is one
major reason why her real age test shows she is young.
Another factor that leads to SSs test being younger than she
is, is her dedication to cardio workout. She has built running outside
into one of her daily routines. The benefits of running include, but are
not limited to, preventing disease, losing weight, boosting confidence,
relieving stress and eliminating depression (Cattanach, 2015). If SS
continues to keep up on her cardio workout she will continue to display
a lower real age test. Some of the other positive health practices that
SS has are she eats a good amount of fruit, she avoids getting
sunburnt and she hugs her pets frequently.
Health Issues
SS has completed Dr. Ozs Real Age test, which showed her
real age to be 18.7 (Roizen, 2013). SS is actually 22.9, so after
answering questions the test revealed that she was 4.2 years younger
than her actual age. As mentioned above, SS has many positive health

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practices that have lead her real age to become less than her actual
age. Unfortunately, not all of her results came back positive and the
areas for improvement are easing her financial worries, getting her
cholesterol tested and an insufficient diet (Roizen, 2013).
Even though SS is still young, it is never too early to get her
cholesterol checked. Having a safe cholesterol level is key to a healthy
heart. The American Heart Association is an advocate for keeping a
healthy heart and getting your cholesterol checked (American Heart
Association, 2014). High cholesterol is a key risk factor for coronary
heart disease and stroke. It is suggested by the American Heart
Association that individuals over the age of 20 should have their
cholesterol levels checked every four to six years (American Heart
Association, 2014).
SS stays on top of her stress, but one area of her life that may
lead to stress is the burden of financial worries. SS does not appear to
be stressed over her financial worries, but it has the potential to arise if
her worries are not fixed. The American Psychological Association
pointed out that financial stress could lead to risk for ulcers, migraines,
heart attacks and sleep disturbances over time (Everyday Health,
2015). A study done in the UK found that about seven million adults lay
awake at night because of worrying about money (Independent, 2014).
Losing sleep is not good for your overall health and is associated with a
variety of health issues. It is hard to believe that financial worries can
lead to a variety of medical issues and these worries should be tackled

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to ensure a healthy lifestyle.

According to SS real age test, the results showed the major
area of concern has to do with nutrition (Roizen, 2013). The results
showed that she needs to eat breakfast everyday, eat more grains,
vary her veggies, go easy on the junk food and red meat, get hooked
on fish and to expand her diet. There are a variety of benefits in the
results about nutrition that she received, and they will be listed below.
Increasing Nutrition-Intervention
Even though SS displays a healthy weight, it is essential that
she maintain a healthy diet. In the United States one third of adults are
obese (CDC, 2011). Obesity and eating unhealthy leads to a variety of
health problems including heart disease, hypertension, type 2
diabetes, osteoporosis and cancer (CDC, 2011). SS needs to start
eating regular, balanced meals so in the later years to come she does
not develop any of these health problems.
SS does not eat breakfast on a regular basis, which is one of
the main reasons for her imbalanced diet. Many people tell you that
breakfast is the most important meal of the day, which is actually very
true. Consumers Report indicated five reasons to eat breakfast in the
morning which are, It may protect your heart, It might lower your risk
of type 2 diabetes, it gets you moving, It might give you a mental edge
and it might keep your weight down (Consumers Report, 2014).
Research has shown that if you eat within two hours of waking up it
makes a difference in the way you metabolize glucose. It is important
to keep glucose and insulin in the correct balance, because if you do

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not it will have negative effects on metabolism and your health

(Consumers Report, 2014).
SS currently does not take in any fish into her diet, which is
frowned upon because there are many health benefits to fish. Fish
contain omega-3 fatty acids, which is a natural acid that helps to
reduce inflammation throughout your body (Mayo Clinic, 2015).
Omega-3 fatty acids may also, decrease triglycerides, lower blood
pressure, reduce blood clotting, decrease stroke and heart failure risk,
reduce irregular heartbeats, and in children may improve learning
ability (Mayo Clinic, 2015). It is recommended that individuals
consume fish that are rich in the omega-3 fatty acids at least twice a
week. It is essential that SS try to include fish into her weekly eating
habits to receive the benefits fish has to offer.
Another main nutrition factor that SS needs to get ahold of is
restricting junk food. In the United States 25% of individuals are
getting their daily caloric intake from predominately junk food. Eating
junk food can lead to obesity, diabetes, depression, increase in sodium
and nutrient deficiencies (Roizman, 2015). When you consume most
junk foods you are getting an overconsumption of salt. The
overconsumption of salt can lead to high blood pressure, heart and
liver disease (Roizman, 2015). There are little to no health benefits in
eating junk food and it should be cut out of SS weekly meals.
Wellness Diagnoses
Two wellness diagnoses were formulated for SS to help with her
progress toward healthier eating habits. The first wellness diagnosis is

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readiness for enhanced therapeutic regimen. A few of the defining

characteristics are, Choices of daily living ineffective for meeting the
goals of treatment or prescription program, verbalized desire to
manage illness and verbalized difficulty with prescribed regimen
(Sparks, 2010).
The second diagnosis is readiness for heightened knowledge
related to improving dietary choices. A few of the defining
characteristics are, Incorrect task performance, expressing frustration
or confusion when performing task and lack of recall (Sparks, 2010).
Goals
There were two goals set for SS using the SMART (specific,
measurable, attainable, and realistically-time-bound) method. The first
goal set was, SS will eat two servings of fish containing the omega-3
fatty acids one time a week. The second goal set was, SS will eat two
cups of fruit for breakfast every morning for a week. These SMART
goals were set based on the results that SS obtained from taking the
real age test (Roizen, 2013).
Transtheoretical Model
The transtheoretical model, is an integrative, biopsychosocial
model to conceptualize the process of intentional behavior change
(Transtheoretical model, 2014). This model is made up of many steps
including precontemplation, contemplation, preparation, action and
maintenance. These steps help to visualize the readiness of an
individual to take the next step to achieve a positive change in their
life. SS is at the preparation step when it comes to eating healthier.
The preparation phase indicates that an individual is ready to take an

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action within the next 30 days (Transtheoretical model, 2014). This is

evident by talking to SS, because she has a plan set in place to start
making better choices. She always knew she wanted to take a positive
step toward change when it comes to her eating, but she really did not
know where to start. SS verbalized that she is going to start a journal
to record her daily meals so she can keep track of the different
servings of each food. This will help her visualize how well she is doing
with her nutrition and the items she has to work harder on changing.
Evaluation
SS recorded what she ate for a week and this is shown in
appendix B. Looking at SSs first SMART goal SS will eat two servings
of fish containing the omega-3 fatty acids one time a week is it shown
that she has successfully completed it. On her daily food log it shows
on Tuesday night she consumed perch for dinner. This fish contains
omega-3 fatty acids and covers her goal of two servings of fish for a
week. On her daily log it is not indicated that the fish was fried and she
picked a certain fish, so this shows that she has a understanding for
what kind of fish contains the omega-3 fatty acids.
In regards to SSs second SMART goal, she was not as
successful as her first goal. Her second SMART goal was SS will eat
two cups of fruit for breakfast every morning for a week. A few
mornings she did a really good job at eating breakfast and included the
two cups of fruit. I spoke with SS and asked if there was anything
interfering with having the fruit for breakfast like we had previously set
in her goal. She indicated that with nursing school she is always

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leaving her house in the morning on the run. It is easier for her to grab
a granola bar then to cut up fruit in the morning before class. Though
she may not have met her goal of having fruit for breakfast, she is
taking a positive step and at least having something for breakfast
unlike her real age test results showed.
With SS first goal, I do not believe it needs reevaluation
because it was very successful. SSs second goal needs a reevaluation
so her daily nutrition goals can be
more successful. Looking at SS daily food log it indicates that she is, for
the most part consuming the correct amount of servings of fruit per
week. She is not consuming them at breakfast, because of the time
commitment it takes to prepare it. For her new goal it would be geared
toward SS eating a healthy meal for breakfast. This meal would not
have to necessarily include the two servings of fruit, as long as she still
consumed it at a different meal that day. It will be important to do
another evaluation to see if SS keeps up with her first goal to consume
fish every week and also to see how her new goal to eat breakfast
everyday works for her.

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Appendix A
Real Age Results

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Appendix B
Daily Food Log

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Snack

Special K
Granola bar
Coffee
strawberries
Coffee

Strawberries
And yogurt
water

Mac
And cheese
water

Pretzels

Tacos with
hard shells,
rice and
beans
water
Mac and
cheese
coffee

Fish (perch)
Broccoli
Rice

watermelon

Cheese
burger with
French fries
Power aide

Fritos

Coffee
Raspberries

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Thursday

Coffee
Granola Bar

Friday

Coffee
Donut

Saturday

Coffee
Bacon and
Eggs

Sunday

Coffee

Salad with/
Turkey, ham,
Cucumbers
Power aide
Coffee
Crackers
with turkey
and cheese
Grilled
chicken
sandwich
with potato
chips
water
French toast
Milk

Broccoli with
Alfrado
sauce
water
Chicken
noodle soup
with a grilled
cheese
Smoothie
with
bananas,
raspberries
and
strawberries
Bagel with
cream
cheese

Popcorn

Rasberries

Pretzels

Appendix C
Dear SS,
I have reviewed your daily food log and have some suggestions
for improvement. First off, you did a very good job at following your
first SMART goal to eat fish once a week. I understand that fish is not
your favorite food, but you were successful at including it in your
weekly meals anyways. Keep up the good work in that area and keep
eating fish once a week. Secondly, following our talk about eating fruit

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everyday for breakfast I have come up with a different goal for you.
Instead of having the two cups of fruit everyday for breakfast, you can
pick different foods of your choice to eat. You should still include two
cups of fruit in your everyday lifestyle, but it does not have to be for
breakfast. You should focus on the fact that you do not eat breakfast as
often as you should. Your new goal is to eat breakfast everyday, but
stay away from what is considered junk food (the donuts, muffins etc).
If you can eat a healthy breakfast everyday it will lead to a healthier
you. We will reevaluate this goal in a few weeks to see how it is
working for you.

References
American Heart Association. (2014). How to Get Your Cholesterol
Tested. Retrieved
from
http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/Conditions/Cholesterol/Sympto

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msDiagnosisMonitoringofHighCholesterol/How-To-Get-YourCholesterol-Tested_UCM_305595_Article.jsp
CDC. (2011). Obesity Trends. Retrieved from
http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/data/trends.HTML
Consumers Report. (2014). Why Eating the Right Breakfast is so
Important.
Retrieved from
http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/magazine/2014/10/whyeating-the-right-breakfast-is-so-important/index.htm
Everyday health. (2015). Healthy Living. Retrieved from
http://www.everydayhealth.com/news/how-avoid-health-riskscome-with-financial-stress/
Jacquie Cattanach. (2015). Benefits of Running. Retrieved from
http://www.active.com/health/articles/6-benefits-of-running
Mayo Clinic. (2015). Omega-3 in Fish. Retrieved from
http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/heartdisease/indepth/omega-3/art-20045614
Mayo Clinic. (2015). Stress Management. Retrieved from
http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-living/stressmanagement/basics/stress-basics/hlv-20049495
Roizen, M. and Oz, M. (2013). RealAge. Retrieved from
http://www.realage.com
Roizman, Tracey. (2015). Reasons Eating Junk Food is Not Good.
Retrieved from
http://healthyeating.sfgate.com/reasons-eating-junk-food-notgood-3364.html
Sparks, S. & Taylor, C. (2010). Nursing diagnosis reference manual.
New York, NY:
Lippincott & Williams.
The Independent (2014). Financial Woes. Retrieved from
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/financialwoes-cause-sleep-problems-for-seven-million-9748425.html
Transtheroretcal Model. (2014). Retrieved from

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http://www.prochange.com/transtheoretical-model-of-behaviorchange