In the midst of all the hype about health care, average United States citizens–both Democrats and Republicans–seem to boil down their concerns to two basic questions: What will my health insurance cover? And how much will it cost? Everyone wants affordable health insurance and to reduce health care cost without sacrificing quality of care. Now, health care reform (no matter your definition of the term) is one way to address these concerns, but people can also take additional measures to reduce their health care cost.

To some degree, what happens in politics concerning health care is out of our control, but living a healthy lifestyle is not. Those who eat nutritious, well-balanced meals and who exercise regularly are far less likely to become ill and to need extensive health care. Of course, there are exceptions, but a healthy lifestyle can prevent a number of illnesses and tragedies that are not only expensive in terms of medical cost, but can also damage a person’s quality of life.

And an all-to-prevalent disease that affects millions of Americans is obesity. Obesity increases a person’s likelihood for heart attack and stroke. Those who are overweight or obese are also more likely to have type two diabetes, sleep apnea, cancer, and liver disease. Being obese can also cause joint and tissue damage, and all of these problems result in higher health care costs.

Exercising and eating nutritious foods will put people on the fast track to weight loss, and some organizations, such as Incenta Health, are encouraging employee weight loss programs to help employers reduce health care cost and to help motivate employees to lose weight in the place where they spend most of their time.

Everyone wants to reduce health care cost, and this complex concern has a simple solution: live a healthy lifestyle.