Whole Foods CEO Believes The Best Way To Solve The Health Insurance Crisis Is "Not Needing It": What He Proposes To Improve Health The State
The topic more important at present without a doubt is health, the pandemic by covid-19 He has left us many lessons and among the main aspects he has invited us to analyze our Lifestyle. The truth is that most renowned doctors and nutritionists, emphasize that the only way to live healthier, for longer and prevent chronic diseases, it is through feeding and the Everyday habits.
Based on it countless projects and trademarks have joined creating various strategies that focus on promote health. Without a doubt, the American chain of supermarkets Whole Foods is among the first on the list and it is completely logical since it is one of the projects with more experience in the field of mindful eating. The company was founded in 1980 and is based in Austin Texas, although its expansion has been such that it currently has more than 460 stores in United States, Canada and UK.
Whole Foods is a company that since its inception is based on sale of natural and organic food, in a way they have been main promoters of this Lifestyle and feeding since 40 years.
His motto: Living well begins with eating well. Based on this, the prominent QA in the products they offer, as they conform to rigorous nutritional standards. In which the sale of any food that contains: hydrogenated fats, high fructose corn syrup, artificial sweeteners and more of 100 flavors, colors and preservatives that are commonly found in food.
Recently the Whole Foods CEO, John mackey, stated that the key to keep people healthy in the U.S is to promote that eat better and live healthier lives. To which he added: “I mean, we honestly talk about health care all the time and a lot of efforts go into it. However: “The best solution is not to need medical attention.”
The reality is that every day we have more scientific references that support the benefits of following a balanced diet and a harmonious lifestyle, as the main prevention of degenerative diseases. Mackey emphasized that hethe best solution is change the way people eat, the way you live, lifestyle and diet. Thus there is no reason why people they should not be healthy and enjoy longer periods of good health.
Another of the current aspects that most concern Mackey and that you mentioned in the recent interview, is the increase in consumption of all kinds of drugs to control the main chronic diseases and before which his opinion is overwhelming: “A lot of drugs are not going to solve the problem ” and today the Modern society has become completely dependent on these medications, which result in dangerous side effects.
Taking into account that el 71% of Americans are overweight and the 42.5% are obese. Clearly, we are taking bad decisions in the way we eat, Mackey emphasizes that it is not a sustainable path and requests better lifestyles as a solution to expensive medical care.
As a sideline reference, in 2009 he wrote an article for the Wall street journal titled: “The Whole Foods Alternative to ObamaCare”, in which he advocated a less government control of health care in the United States. “This begins with the understanding that every american adult is responsible for your own healthMackey wrote. “We must take that responsibility very seriously and use our freedom to make the right decisions in the lifestyle that will protect our health ”.
He controversial opinion piece caused some to boycott Whole Foods. While it is true that a bad nutrition can lead to health conditions dangerous and expensive. For reference according to a opinion piece published in New York Times of 2019, “the cardiovascular diseases they cost $ 351 billion per year in healthcare expenses and lost productivity, while diabetes cost $ 327 billion annually.
This opinion has been added recognized figures worldwide, such is the case of Nadereh Pourat, teacher and director of Evaluation and Economics Research Program of Health at the Center for Health Policy Research of UCLA. Who complements in this regard: “The idea that if people take care of themselves and have a healthy lifestyle, their health will improve is… a fundamental concept … and lots public health interventions They are designed to educate people to do exactly that, ”Pourat told CNBC Make It.
That being said, we cannot forget that there are other factors what lead to disease and that require medical attention, like genetics, adverse life events, exposure to chemical substances and many more. There are also events that we cannot control, such as current pandemic by Covid-19. Thus, the public health perspective It is also to have a care system of the capable health and effective that can provide services for detect disease or risk factors, provide preventive services and provide treatment when needed.
While Mackey recommends behavior changes as the optimal solution for skyrocketing healthcare costs, Whole Foods provides its full time employees access to a health insurance. However, Whole Foods announced that in 2020 part time employees who work less than 30 hours a week would no longer be eligible to participate in the company health care plan. At that moment, Whole Foods I declare that this change would affect less than 2% of your employees and that the company would work together with them to find alternatives.
It is worth mentioning that Mackey himself, 67 years old, Preach by example: is vegan, meditate daily and monitor their own behaviors to make healthy changes. For example: analyze how long you sleep, the quality of sleep and is used to take your pulse overnight. It has also been realized that when you drink alcohol, he deep sleep disappears almost completely, you do not sleep the same hours as usual and your pulse increases.
For end Mackey interview talked a bit about some Systems of health that it respects: “I think there are good models [del sistema de atención médica] that work ”, as is the case of Singapore, where people pay for routine care and insurance is used to high costs. As well Switzerland, where people buy insurance from private non-profit organizations. But in America, we do not look for solutions in which everyone wins, we look for solutions in which everyone loses. All this situation that comes from years ago, has created a lot of anger, a lot of disappointment and much frustration.
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