Healthy Living Habits and a Healthier Lifestyle - Why Adopt and Maintain Them
Let's get straight to the point: whatever your goals in life, from making money and being successful to simply living long and well, in order to achieve them, you need one basic condition: to be alive. But there's little point in being alive if you don't have a properly functioning body and mind. The malfunctioning of one affects the performance of the other. More information can be found at https://icaro.med.br/viver/. So it's obvious that every human being needs to provide their body with the conditions to function properly on a daily basis, or they will get sick or even die.
Within this logic, it is essential to talk about three modern concepts: time, productivity and stress. Those who manage their time well achieve better results, are more successful and are more productive with less associated stress. After all, stress is one of the major causes of illness today, as described in https://icaro.med.br/falta-de-tempo-ou-falta-de-planejamento/. Without health, the “machine” that makes it all possible simply cannot function. If your body and/or mind aren't well, you won't be able to work or produce properly in any area of life. Sick, you waste a lot of time and, without a doubt, your productivity decreases. Now imagine that, while this is happening to you, someone healthier may get the opportunity they've been waiting for to show that they can produce well in your field, perhaps even more and better than you.
Regarding illnesses and general disorders or imbalances, your body has the potential to help treat all of them and, in many cases, even treat itself. However, to do this, it needs your support: providing the conditions to repair damage, fight off invaders, recover, maintain and re-establish its balance.
Now that we agree on the vital importance of taking care of the overall health of our organism, both body and mind, the question arises: how do we do this? Stanford University gave the answer in a “recent” study that concluded that it is far more important than genetics, environmental conditions and even regular medical care to live longer, healthier and better lives. Around 60% of our healthy longevity comes from our lifestyle. In other words, your lifestyle habits are proven to be the most important and decisive factors in your state of health or illness. They determine how long you will live, with what degree of productivity, capacity and well-being.
E healthy lifestyle habits are conditions that only you can provide for your body. By becoming aware of their importance, adopting and maintaining them, you enable your body and mind to strengthen themselves to prevent and combat illness by acting on their causes. In this way, you can prevent, eliminate or improve symptoms in a natural, long-lasting and highly effective way. Always remember that no treatment really works for those who don't seek to have and maintain as many healthy lifestyle habits as possible.
What are they?
1 - Drink water every hour: Most of the body is made up of water; therefore, in its absence, everything in the body suffers and functions worse. It is essential to drink water several times a day, at least 3 liters a day for an adult. Lack of water is linked to practically all diseases and symptoms, from obesity and headaches to high blood pressure, inflammation and circulatory diseases in general.
2 - Eat every three hours: Food provides energy and raw materials for our bodies to rebuild themselves. Therefore, we need a variety of nutrients (without excess) every three hours. Going too long without eating is like a car with fuel problems: it simply doesn't work properly.
3 - Eat fiber at least twice a day: Leafy greens, fruits, cereals, granola, sprouts, mushrooms and the like are rich in fiber. It's important to consume between 25 and 35 grams of fiber a day. Why is this important? Because they help cleanse our bodies internally and no intestine can function properly without them.
4 - Exercise at least three times a week, for more than 30 minutes each time: Regular physical exercise, such as walking, gymnastics and cycling, improves blood circulation. This helps the heart do its job and prevents the worst consequences of clogged veins and arteries, such as increased pressure, thrombosis, embolisms, heart attacks and strokes. They also help you breathe better and gain more muscle, essential for a healthier old age. It is safest to seek medical advice before starting physical activity.
5 - Take care of your sleep: During sleep, your body and mind recover from the past day and prepare for the next. This includes fixing memories, replenishing nutrients, selecting what is necessary and what needs to be eliminated, among other things. People who don't sleep well are gradually getting sicker. Prefer to sleep in the dark, in a quiet environment, for enough hours, with a good mattress and pillows.
6 - Breathe properly: Today's fast-paced and stressful life means that we breathe more and more shallowly, which impairs our body's oxygen supply. This gas is essential for the proper functioning of body and mind. Always remember that we have three vital “fuels”: the air we breathe, the food we eat and the water we drink. Problems with any of them can lead to illness.
7 - Reduce your stress: Stress is one of the biggest causes of illness today. To combat it, here are four basic tips:
- 1 - Plan ahead and be less surprised by the unexpected;
- 2 - Focus your energy on taking action to solve problems, rather than dwelling on them;
- 3 - Avoid making a “storm in a glass of water”, as this consumes your energy and does little to resolve the issue;
- 4 - Maintain regular leisure activities and switch off periodically. After all, even a machine needs to be turned off from time to time to “cool down”, doesn't it?
8 - Maintain a positive and proactive attitude: Negative thinking impairs the functioning of various systems in the body, while positive thinking helps.
9 - Consult the appropriate health professionals regularly and follow their advice: Regular consultations make it possible to identify and treat disorders in their early stages, as well as receiving advice on prevention and treatment. Even those who take care of themselves can fall ill. That's why it's essential to follow treatments exactly as prescribed by professionals, so that they have the greatest chance of success.
10 - Avoid overdoing it and getting intoxicated: An excess of anything is always harmful and can intoxicate the body. Therefore, excesses should be occasional and are best tolerated by a body that is well looked after on a daily basis. For example, more than two cups of espresso a day can cause symptoms such as increased blood pressure, gastritis, calcium malabsorption, intestinal malfunction, among others. In addition, fumes of any kind, from cigarettes to pollution, pesticides, excessive sun exposure, drugs and the like, poison the body and overload the detoxification systems, causing, maintaining or worsening signs, symptoms and diseases. You already produce toxins simply by being alive... So why allow more toxins into your body and mind?
11 - Expose yourself more to the “Good Sun”: More than half of humanity is deficient in vitamin D, which is actually an essential hormone for more than 220 processes in the body. The main source of vitamin D is the conversion of cholesterol in the skin through exposure to sunlight. For this reason, at least three times a week, it is advisable (unless otherwise advised by your doctor) to expose yourself to the sun at suitable times for 20 to 30 minutes (before 9:30 am and after 4:30 pm) so that your body produces vitamin D. This vitamin helps control blood pressure. This vitamin helps control blood pressure, improve immunity and fix calcium where necessary, such as in the bones, among other beneficial effects.
If you incorporate as many of these habits as possible into your daily life, you'll be healthier and your body will be better able to respond to the various unbalancing factors to which we are exposed every day. The result? Fewer illnesses and much better quality of life and well-being, factors that contribute to greater productivity, capacity, longevity and, consequently, greater chances of success!
It's important to note that this is not an all-or-nothing approach: you don't have to have all 11 perfect healthy habits right away to get results. The more of these habits you adopt and maintain, as best you can, according to your real effort and personal conditions, the greater and better the beneficial effect on your health will be, cumulatively. However, each person has their own pace for implementing changes. The important thing is to really start practicing them, even if it's gradually.
Cheers,
Icarus
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