Reclaim Your Health With These Simple Tips
Contrary to popular beliefs, most people aren’t just victims of bad genetics. Instead, it’s a combination of genetics with environmental factors and unhealthy habits that contribute to most people’s poor health. While your genetics play a role, it’s not the whole picture. You can reclaim your health and take proactive steps toward a healthier lifestyle that keeps you feeling strong, energetic, and less likely to need long-term medications.
Get Baseline Tests
Your health is more than what you see on the outside. Are you borderline diabetic? Do you have higher than normal cholesterol levels? What’s your blood pressure like? It’s important to look beyond your weight and height to see what’s going on underneath the surface. Getting tested by your primary doctor can help you determine what you need to do to take steps toward a healthier you. As your health improves, new testing will show how far you’ve come.
Walk Everyday
How many hours per day are you sedentary? The truth is that many health problems arise because people are no longer active throughout the day. They drive to work, sit at a desk, then drive home and spend their evenings sitting in their homes. By adding in walks throughout the day, you can greatly improve your health. Not only can walking help you lose weight, but it can also help you reduce your blood sugar, decrease your risk of cancer, and improve your heart health. All of these benefits are great reasons to buy a pair of men’s or women’s casual sneakers, lace them up, and get moving. It’s easy to add in walks in 10-15 minute increments and work up to walking a total of 1 hour daily.
Improve Your Mental Health
When your mind is struggling, your body struggles too. People with mental health issues may also experience addictions and other behaviors that are harmful to physical health. Because your mind and body are intricately linked, being proactive about your mental health will go a long way to improving your physical health.
See a medical professional if you’re experiencing signs of depression or anxiety especially if they are making it difficult for you to function. Depression may lead to self-medicating with food, which can increase weight and blood sugar and lead to diabetes down the road. By addressing depression, you’ll address the source of overeating and be able to help more effectively. Some people may benefit from cognitive behavioral therapy to address the issues impacting their life that’s causing depression or anxiety.
Lay Off the Caffeine and Alcohol
Drinking a small cup of coffee per day or a glass of wine per week isn’t going to have a negative effect on your health. But many people are indulging in multiple cups of coffee per day, and they find themselves drinking a lot of alcohol frequently. Whether you feel drunk or not isn’t the issue, it’s the effect of alcohol on your brain, stomach, liver, and other internal organs that should concern you. And with caffeine, too much of it can lead to adrenal fatigue and other long-term health problems. Your best bet is to limit yourself to a small cup of coffee daily and limit yourself to 1-2 servings of alcohol per week at most. These simple steps can help you feel more energized and improve your health.
Drink Distilled Water
Tap water may be better than sewer water, but it still contains harmful chemicals that can impact people’s fertility and increase their cancer risk. Distilled water is the best option because even the best filters don’t get rid of everything. You might be thinking about how expensive distilled water can be, and you’re right, buying bottled, distilled water is very expensive. The good news is that you can distill it at home using a home water distiller for a very low cost. Over time, the impact that drinking distilled water will have on your health will more than make up for the up-front costs.
Adding in weights, specific supplements, and improving the quality of your food are also ways you can take charge of your health. By reducing your processed food intake you’ll eat more nutrient dense fruits, vegetables, and meats which all add positive benefits to your health and well-being.