As that segment of the U.S. population known as Baby Boomers ages into its 60s, they find that access to a comprehensive medical center for quality healthcare becomes more and more important.
Sadly, many of us increase the chances of suffering illness and other physical problems because of our sedentary lifestyles. It’s been reported that fewer than 5% of adults regularly engage in even 30 minutes of daily physical activity. Seventy per cent get no regular exercise. More than 80% of the adult population fails to meet minimum guidelines for performing aerobic and muscle-strengthening activities.
Many of us will find ourselves taking advantage of the non-emergency care available at a medical center, such as diagnostic and therapeutic services. Those of us over 50 should be scheduling colonoscopies and related procedures to test for the presence of colorectal cancer.
Men should be checked regularly for evidence of cancer of the prostate, 60% of which occurs at age 65 or older. In the U.S., it’s the second leading cause of cancer mortality in men. Only lung cancer is more deadly. If a male has two or more relatives with prostate cancer, his chances of developing it are almost quadrupled.
Procedures such as total hip replacement, knee replacement, and other joint replacement surgery are routinely performed at a large medical center.
And, of course, there are facilities for treating heart-related problems. About 735,000 people each year in the U.S. suffer a heart attack. There’s one every 43 seconds. And it’s been shown that 49% of us exhibit at least one of the three major risk factors, which are high blood pressure, high LDL cholesterol and a smoking habit. And it’s not just men. Some 42 million women currently have a cardiovascular disease of one type or another, and 8 million women have a history of either heart attack or angina.