How COVID-19 Highlights the Importance of Overall Health

The keys to maintaining health are often the daily decisions we make over a lifetime, including whether we eat well, get regular exercise, and avoid stress and environmental toxins. (michaeljung/Shutterstock)

While there is evidence that young people can get COVID-19, the numbers suggest the most vulnerable among us have the highest risk.

There is research to suggest that health conditions like heart problems and diabetes can make COVID-19 much more dangerous.

One study out of China, for example, found that nearly 73 percent of those killed by the virus averaged at about 66 years of age and had an existing noncommunicable chronic disease. Some associated conditions were high blood pressure, coronary heart disease, and diabetes.

[Editors note: The Epoch Times has received information and documents revealing the Chinese regime has manipulated its infection statistics, but this profile of those most vulnerable to COVID-19 is comparable to reporting from reliable sources.]

While there is no surefire way to prevent infection or limit its effect, these numbers suggest that a person’s existing health condition plays a major role in the severity of the virus.

This highlights the importance of practicing a preventative lifestyle. We never know when a pandemic can hit, and being as healthy as possible when it does may be a matter of life and death, regardless of age.

Every year, tens of thousands of people die from the flu, and outside of young children, it is the same cohort that is taking the biggest hit from COVID-19.

So, what can you do?

COVID-19 can serve as motivation to take more care. Practicing a healthy lifestyle that promotes lower blood pressure, reductions in cholesterol, and improved heart health is a place to start.

Working to manage blood sugar and potentially reverse diabetes, or prevent it, is another area of focus.

Losing weight to take the stress off of your body can also help to optimize your immune system and promote anti-aging and longevity.

Sometimes it’s hard to recognize how the daily decisions we make throughout life make a real difference. But the current pandemic is, in a way, showing that they can.

Although there is no guarantee that lifestyle can protect you from infection, it can lower your risk and put your body in a better place to handle what the world throws at it. After all, a healthy lifestyle is associated with a reduced risk of a number of chronic conditions.

Devon Andre holds a bachelor’s degree in forensic science from the University of Windsor in Canada and a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Pittsburgh. Andre is a journalist for BelMarraHealth, which first published this article.