Guerilla Health

with Christopher Ervin, MD

In recent weeks, I’ve been asked where the term guerilla health came from. Some have asked, “isn’t that a term from warfare and revolution; what does it have to do with health?” Well, in this day and age, getting and staying healthy can feel like war. Indeed, the term is the diminutive of the Spanish word guerra “war”, or literally “little war. The strategy and tactics of guerrilla warfare involve the use of a small, mobile force competing against a larger, less nimble and, perhaps, a monolithic, more powerful one.

The guerrilla organizes small units of the local population, the people who know the terrain best, who understand the culture and can effectively use the resources available. And then, quite under the radar, he or she can, in partnership with the locals, carry out the mission. My mission? Health.

In the US, there are more than 1 million preventable deaths each year from diseases like breast, lung and colorectal cancer, diabetes, hypertension and coronary heart disease. According to the CDC cigarette smoking alone accounts for an about 443,000 deaths, or nearly 1 of every 5 deaths, each year in the United States. When other preventable deaths are considered, automobile accidents (think seat belts), homicides (think hand guns), vaccine preventable deaths (think shots), HIV/AIDS (think condoms) among others, it doesn’t take much to imagine the mothers, fathers, sisters and brothers who could still be here with their loved ones.

The US is 30th in the world in life expectancy, dead last among developed nations in preventable deaths and we have among the highest chronic disease and obesity rates of any country. So what’s the war? The war is the sorry state of health in our country, perpetuated, in part, by the medical, food, and entertainment industry. This is a war, however, we’ve all participated in creating. We buy fast food, cigarettes, video games and other products that contribute to unhealthy lifestyles. We don’t exercise as we should. And, we look for the miracle pill, device or surgery to “fix” what ever ails us.

We are being sold what we’ve asked for. But now we’re at the point where my children’s generation is on track to have a shorter life expectancy than my generation. It’s time to act. To fight. Who are the guerillas? We are. We know our culture and our communities. We know how to take small opportunities turn them into big changes.

We can all, quietly and without fanfare, press or talk show appearances begin to change our habits. Add more fruits and vegetables (from our local farmer’s markets) to what we consume each day. Forget the Olympic style stuff you see on infomercials. You are not going to burn 800 calories in an hour unless you’re a world class athlete. But you can add one flight of stairs to your routine each day. You can get to know your neighbors and walk around the block. You can get your regular check ups and screenings. Here are common screening guidelines for cancer prevention and detection.

And, you can encourage your family and friends to do the same. The companies that currently sell unhealthy products will sell us whatever we demand. They just need to earn money for their shareholders. Even tobacco companies can sell smoking cessation products. We have the power to change what is available.

So, let’s begin, quietly, like guerilla fighters in the night, to demand healthy products, to eat better, get more exercise, to stop our unhealthy habits. We don’t have to tell anybody what we’re doing. And soon, the US won’t be last in health status among developed countries. And our mothers, fathers, sisters and brothers, children and grandchildren will be around to see that.