What are some of the most common behaviors that contribute to the leading causes of death? And is there anything we can do to change our likelihood of death from a particular cause? When a death happens before someone is expected to die, we call that premature death. Some early or premature deaths can be prevented by actions by the individual or the healthcare system.
Some individual behaviors that are responsible for many of the deaths in the United States are: using tobacco, a sedentary lifestyle, drinking alcohol, and an unhealthy diet. A few other preventable causes of death that can be affected by healthcare and social determinants of health are: uncontrolled high blood pressure, opioid overdose, and lack of cancer screenings.
Health behaviors are considered to be modifiable determinants of health – that is, you can change them! But how can people change these common behaviors? The field of health education uses several theories to explain the process of making behavior change.
• Health belief model – http://sphweb.bumc.bu.edu/otlt/MPH-Modules/SB/BehavioralChangeTheories/BehavioralChangeTheories2.html
• Theory of planned behavior – http://sphweb.bumc.bu.edu/otlt/MPH-Modules/SB/BehavioralChangeTheories/BehavioralChangeTheories3.html
• Social cognitive theory – http://sphweb.bumc.bu.edu/otlt/MPH-Modules/SB/BehavioralChangeTheories/BehavioralChangeTheories5.html
• Transtheoretical model or Stages of Change – http://sphweb.bumc.bu.edu/otlt/MPH-Modules/SB/BehavioralChangeTheories/BehavioralChangeTheories6.html
Remember, modifiable does not mean easy! Often, changing health habits can be very difficult.
