9 Financial Benefits of Going Healthy

The first thing that comes to mind when thinking about living a healthier lifestyle is usually losing weight, becoming fit, and avoiding certain lifestyle diseases. But not a lot of people think about how it can be a benefit to your finances. The benefits of a healthier lifestyle not only relates to your body and mind, but your budget as well. So, that's why in today's Practical Wisdom video, we're going to be talking about the benefits living a healthy lifestyle has on your pockets. Finances and health are hard to separate, especially since healthcare costs money, and making money is a lot easier when you're healthy. You might make excuses and say that you don't have time to practice some of the healthy habits, like eating a balanced diet and exercising or getting enough sleep. But once you take a look at all the benefits they might bring to your finances, you might start making time for it. When you take steps to improve your health, it often influences your finances as well. If changes made towards a healthier lifestyle are implemented carefully, they result in great financial benefits long term. So, to begin, we're starting with… Day-to-Day Savings You can save money every day by living a healthier lifestyle, and this can be done by cutting out unhealthy habits. You probably have some vices you'd like to get rid of, and this could be anything from smoking cigarettes to consuming alcohol. Oftentimes, it's only the health benefits of quitting these habits that are discussed, and rarely the benefits to your bank account. If you do the math depending on how much you consume, a lot of money can be saved. The average number of cigarettes smoked per day continues to drop, with less than 15 cigarettes per day becoming the highest percentage, according to the overall tobacco trends from the American Lung Association. If you smoke 10 cigarettes a day and decide to shake this habit, you could ultimately save around $1,100 a year and close to $46,000 after two decades. Not to mention what you'll save on your doctor's visits and medical treatments. Cultivating Better Eating Habits Also Leads to Financial Savings If you reduce your portion sizes and cut out snacking, you can save quite a chunk of change. Also, preparing meals at home instead of eating out can be effective in keeping you in shape and being more financially stable. Choosing to walk or bike to work would help minimize your trips to the gas station and the cost of maintaining your vehicle, something that your pocket would be grateful for. But aside from that, you also benefit from the frequent exercise, which helps you both physically and mentally. Lower Insurance Rates There's a reason why Medicare and many other health insurance companies offer preventative care or fitness programs. Basically, the healthier you are, the less likely you'll need their services and the less they'll need to pay out. It's for this reason that many plans will inquire about your lifestyle, such as whether you're a smoker, and if that's the case, will have to charge you more. Life Insurance The same can be said about life insurance. Life insurers pay a lot of attention to your history when creating a policy for you because an individual in excellent health is less likely to succumb to life-threatening ailments. Paying for insurance comes with hefty fees and premiums. If you're a healthy person, life insurance companies will often offer you lower premiums. And this is because they factor in a lot of things when determining how much of a risk you are to cover. There's less of a risk to pay out the healthier you are, and for that you're rewarded by being charged less. That's why insurers stress on your health status when coming up with a plan. A simple example is premiums for smoking, for example, can be higher than those of non-smokers. When it comes to life insurance, you typically have a unique opportunity to directly impact how much you pay on your premiums based on how healthy you are. 3. Lower Health Complication and Costs Adopting a healthier lifestyle helps prevent a number of conditions and illnesses that may result from unhealthy living. Such illnesses include high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, stroke, and other life-threatening conditions. Managing these diseases comes at a high cost which could easily be remedied by eating healthy and following a strict fitness routine. According to the George Washington University, the cost of being obese in America ranges from $147 to $200 billion every year. And a majority of these funds go towards treating diseases such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Research has found that on average, a person who walks or exercises for at least 2.5 hours a week spends less on medical expenses as compared to those who fail to do so. Hence, by making fewer doctor visits and spending less on prescription costs, a lot of money is saved. 4. Employers Give You Financial Reasons to Prioritize Your Health Employers are increasingly beginning to recognize that having healthy employees is good for business. Healthy employees take fewer sick days, thus reducing health insurance costs for the company. Many employers offer financial benefits to those who adopt a healthy lifestyle. Health incentives that are aimed at motivating employees to live healthy. Some of these incentives include reimbursement for gym memberships, on-site fitness center, bonuses for being tobacco-free, and so on. You can save a decent amount on your insurance or receive bonuses as a reward for engaging in healthier habits. So why not take advantage of some of these incentives? 5. Taking Fewer Sick Days and Improve Career People who are generally healthy don't take as many sick days as people who get sick. That being said, you should prioritize your health so as to improve your work performance and career prospects. Nobody's saying that you shouldn't take an off day when you're sick because staying home and getting the necessary treatment is part of putting your health at the forefront. However, sick days can directly impact your income, especially if you work in a place where you only get paid when you show up for work. Taking less sick days also means you can cash in on your unused sick leave. In other words, you still get paid when you're not working. And how awesome is that? A great attendance record also works in your favor as you stand out and your bosses see how dedicated you are to what you do and maybe even consider giving financial bonuses or consider you for a promotion. 6. Prioritizing Health by Eating a Balanced Diet Eating healthy isn't easy for many of us. We want to but fail to do so every time. That's why we make resolutions at the beginning of the year but fail to follow through. Eating healthy doesn't have to cost a lot, as most people believe. We seem so content with the cheap fast food, but it's possible to eat a healthy diet without consuming a huge lot of your budget. Being mindful of what you get when you go to grocery store is an important part of managing your money. Junk food and frozen dinners might be cheap, but they don't do much to improve your overall health. Fruits and veggies, on the other hand, are much healthier despite being a bit costly. But remember, there are plenty of ingredients that are affordable, like rice, beans, and canned vegetables that you can go for. Also, cut out all those sugary, unhealthy drinks and excess alcohol and switch to water. It's not only good for your waistline but your wallet as well. Limit the number of times you eat out is good, as it saves you money. It's much cheaper to buy your own ingredients and prepare something from home. Also, sticking to more nutritious meals helps you save money with time and improve your health and well-being. 7. Fewer doctor visits There's nothing wrong with getting regular checkups once in a while, especially if you feel like there might be something wrong with your body, but living unhealthily leads to an increased number of doctor's visits. Many insurance plans charge a fee for every doctor's appointment. And the fee might increase if you need to visit a specialist. The same applies if you need lab work done, testing, or some other procedure. One study in particular that looked at the relationship between physical fitness and the use of healthcare services found that the men who were most physically fit were less likely to visit their doctor or require medical treatments in the previous year than the least fit men. To add to that, the men in the least fit category were more likely to need multiple medical treatments. So, by living healthy, you get to minimize the number of trips you take to the hospital and save a ton of cash in the process. 8. You reap the benefits of getting enough sleep Getting enough sleep can improve your life in many ways. A lot of us are way too busy to get the 7 or 8 hours of sleep we need every night. But prioritizing sleep has a lot of benefits, which can impact you both health-wise and financially. For one, it's easier to maintain focus throughout the day, reducing mistakes and improving productivity. You have improved memory and increased your accuracy allowing you to be productive and earn more. You also reduce the risk of developing heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and high blood pressure when you get enough rest, which means you spend less on medical bills. It's often said that billionaires don't sleep much at night, but research suggests otherwise. And who said you can't make money while you sleep? A great way to grow your wealth is by putting your money to work for you by making wise investments. 9. Regular exercise Exercising enables you to maintain a healthy body weight, build muscle, improve energy levels, and improve focus, which improves your performance at work and impresses your employers. Exercise also means reducing the risk of developing some of the diseases mentioned above. The American College of Sports Medicine and the CDC recommend that adults get at least half an hour of moderate-intensity physical activity on most days, if not all days of the week, to reap the health benefits of physical fitness. And it's not just the health benefits you gain, but also financially as well. In conclusion, healthy living isn't always a solution for money-saving, but it can be in certain situations. You might be able to save money simply by adopting a new healthy habit or two. Keep in mind that you don't have to spend more money to lead a healthy lifestyle. If you want to work on improving your physical, mental, and financial well-being all at once, it's entirely possible. Well, thank you so much for watching, and see you in the next one.