Even though many of our health and medical experiences are outside our control, there are a lot of habits that do positively impact our wellness (and wallets). Healthy lifestyle choices — even by making just one small change at a time — can help you improve your physical, mental, and even financial health.
When we think about a healthy lifestyle and how to adjust our habits, here are some aspects of health and wellness to keep in mind:
- Eating fruits and vegetables
- Drinking water
- Getting enough sleep
- Taking vitamins
- Brushing and flossing your teeth
- Getting regular exercise (whether it’s walking, running, yoga, stretching, biking, hiking, skating, weight lifting, or whatever gets your body moving, fits your capabilities, and makes you happy!)
- Wearing sunscreen every day (which is an HSA-eligible expense!)
- Taking care of your mental health
- Quitting unhealthy habits like smoking cigarettes and drinking alcohol
- Resting when you are sick
- Seeing a doctor to get both major and minor health issues checked
- Getting your annual wellness exams, including preventatives screenings
Reducing health-related expenses
Doing what you can to stay healthy can translate into big savings when it comes to potential health-related costs. Of course, we can’t control all health conditions. But often, preventative care and screening — through annual wellness visits, health monitoring, vaccinations, and more — can go a long way toward mitigating many potential health issues, as well as saving yourself from bigger expenses.
Some lifestyle choices can significantly reduce your expenses over time, from fewer doctor or specialist appointments to avoiding conditions like diabetes and heart disease.
Regular preventative care is a smart use for your HSA funds, and even better, annual wellness exams are covered at no cost by your high-deductible health plan.
And with fewer health-related expenses, you may be able to save and invest more with your HSA. The more money you leave invested in your HSA, the more you will see the advantages of compound growth as years go by. Then, you may have much more money to use for future expenses as you age.
Reducing everyday spending
Quitting or reducing poor health habits can also save you some bucks. If you quit smoking or consuming alcohol, not only are you making a healthy choice for your body and mind, but you will be spending less by not buying those substances. This money-saving benefit can be true of many habit changes, like swapping sugary drinks for water, needing less migraine medicine because you get more sleep, or spending less on driving or public transportation because you’re walking more.
Over long periods of time, these everyday choices can add up to a lot of money saved in your monthly budget that you can contribute to your HSA, or use elsewhere!
Increased productivity
Feeling as good as you can is, of course, important on its own. Having more energy and ability to do the things you enjoy is priceless.
A secondary benefit is that feeling good and avoiding sickness helps us stay productive — in whatever ways that means to you. In a work sense, staying healthier means you might be able to perform your job better and more easily, or use fewer sick days. All of that can turn into higher earnings over time.
