In 2015, healthcare spending in the U.S. topped $3 trillion dollars annually; more recent statistics indicate that the costs of care continues to rise with a per capita expense of approximately $10,345 per (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid [CMS],2015; Alonso-Zaldivar, 2016). Per the Centers for the Disease Control (CDC), approximately 75% of healthcare costs is directly attributed to the onset of chronic diseases (2015). Chronic illnesses can be mitigated by eating nutritiously and being physically active; for most individuals affected, preventative health education initiatives can aid in reducing health disparities (CDC, 2015).
