What Does Health Mean To You?

October 8th, 2009 at 10:40am Jan Jann

What does health mean to you?

The World Health Organization defines health as the overall state of physical, mental, and social well being - not just the absence of disease. There are three simply areas you can work on to address your health: snack smarter, control your cholesterol, and stop stressing. #1: Snack smarter by reading the food label. The first three ingredients are the most important. Watch out for stuff you don’t recognize and avoid sugars, corn syrup, and hydrogenated oils. Better yet, choose minimally processed and raw foods – they have more nutrient value. Choose foods that include protein, carbohydrates and fiber because those help satisfy hunger. A slice of turkey, a few whole-grain crackers with low-fat cheese is a great snack. #2: Be proactive about your cholesterol, know your numbers and get your bad cholesterol (LDL) under control. For people who aren’t high risk the target is 100 or less, for those with coronary heart disease, diabetes or other risk factors the target is 50 to 70. To control your cholesterol naturally eat 5 servings of fruits/vegetables daily – a serving is about the size of your fist. So a banana at breakfast, a baked potato with steamed broccoli for lunch, an apple snack, a salad at dinner with one more veggie is perfect. Also, exercise – aim for 30 to 45 minutes of moderately vigorous exercise most days of the week. #3: Stop stressing because it leads to all sorts of health-related conditions like insomnia, depression, high blood pressure, and heart attacks. The trick is to block the stress hormones adrenaline and noradrenalin. Practice this routine for 10 minutes twice a day: sit quietly in a comfortable position, close your eyes and repeat a word, sound, song or prayer. When other thoughts creep into your mind, simply let them go and focus on your chosen repetition. Following these three guidelines can help you on your way toward total health.

Entry Filed under: health