As the debate on healthcare reform rages in Congress, The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says avoidable behaviors like smoking, poor diet and lack of exercise are the underlying cause of half of the deaths in the United States.
Study after study has shown that the absolute best way to improve health, reduce chronic health problems such as being overweight, high cholesterol, high blood sugar, inflammation and many other health problems is through lifestyle changes. It is important to know that lifestyle changes in most every case will outperform medications. No drug can deliver the benefits of eating right, getting moderate exercise, and having a positive attitude.
Changing bad habits such as smoking can positively affect health later in life. Modify these five bad habits if you wish to live longer.
Eating the Wrong Foods
Excess weight can cause multiple health problems and complications, including diabetes, heart disease and stroke. Substituting good carbohydrates (sweet potatoes, wheat bread, brown rice) for bad carbohydrates (white potatoes, white bread, white rice) and adding lean proteins, while limiting foods with high fat and sugar contents, will help maintain a healthy weight. Making sure you are not eating more calories than you need is critical to weight loss. Know the calories of the foods you eat.
Pay Attention to Food Labels
If you are planning to reduce your body weight but you still purchase processed food, make sure that you read food labels. Firstly, this is needed in order to understand how many calories each food item contains. If you know this information, you will not exceed your daily calorie allowance. Label reading also prevents you from consuming different fillers, additives, sweeteners, flavor enhancers, etc., which contribute to weight gain. Moreover, you will protect yourself against highly harmful and toxic ingredients often available in the processed food.
If you consider food labels, you will be able to make healthier choices and keep your weight under control without a risk to your health.
Smoking and Drinking
Smoking and excessive alcohol intake is proven to have negative health effects on a person at any age, but those who smoke and drink regularly increase their chances of more advanced medical problems. Another point to consider is that many medications when mixed with alcohol can pose serious health risks. While there are plenty of studies that point to the benefits of a glass of red wine each day, don’t go out and start drinking if you do not do so now. Smoking, like obesity, will contribute to serious health problems. There is no getting around this.
Eating Too Much
The majority of Americans have no idea about portion control. As dining establishments vie for business, they entice customers with larger portions for less money. This “super size” syndrome has distorted what a normal portion looks like. In fact, if people do not see a huge pile of food, they feel ripped off. This distortion of normal portion sizes is destroying your health. Not only are people getting way too many calories, they are ingesting a lot of food additives that can contribute to weight gain and increased toxic load on the body.
To solve this problem, choose a small plate. In such a way, you will substantially cut food consumption. Also, you should eat slowly. Don’t forget that the brain signals about satiation only 20 minutes after you start eating. So, don’t try to swallow food as fast as possible.
Eat Breakfast
There is always a temptation not to eat breakfast when you try to lose weight. You may think that in such a way you decrease calorie intake and give a boost to the weight loss process. But it’s a completely wrong strategy.
The studies have indicated that the body weight in both adults and children who eat breakfast is lower than the body weight in those adults and children who ignore this meal. Also, according to the studies, people who don’t have difficulties with weight loss eat breakfast. Regular breakfast eating improves vitamin and mineral status. It means that people get all essential nutrients but at the same time cut fat intake and hence reduce body weight.
Moreover, the experts claim that breakfast is the most important food which a person consumes during the day. If you skip breakfast, there is a high likelihood of food cravings, snacking, and overeating, especially in the evening. The medical professionals emphasize that breakfast should be an inherent element of a healthy lifestyle.
Stick to Meal Planning
If you believe that you can eat whenever you want and lose weight, it’s a mistaken approach.
Each of us has its own internal clock which governs all the processes in the body. That’s why the time when you eat has an influence on the metabolic rate, sleep pattern, likelihood of obesity-related disorders, and of course body weight.
The body performs its functions on a schedule if you restrict the food you consume to a particular time on a daily basis. Meal timing is a sure way to accelerate the calorie burning process. It helps avoid snacking and prevent eating fat and sugar rich foods. Food timing also has a long-term impact on body weight.
Since the body requires food each 3-5 hours, it’s not difficult to time eating. It’s important to consume food at the same time daily. But even in this case moderate healthy snacking such as vegetables and cheese is admissible.
Lack of Exercise
Keeping physically active is integral to keeping the heart, mind and bones healthy. Physical restrictions make exercise a challenge, but there are still small ways to incorporate physical activity into a daily routine, such as parking further away from the store to get in a short walk.
Programs such as yoga, Pilates or Tai Chi can help with balance and weight loss and can be adapted to all levels of physical ability. Exercise plays an important role in weight loss, and is proven to offer many other health benefits, including helping to keep the mind sharp. Unbelievably, simply walking 30 minutes per day can have profound benefits to your health.
Reduce Stress
In fact, stress is the number one reason people miss work. It causes a variety of health problems that cause us to seek medical help. Stress is silently working against us. While reducing stress is easier said than done, stress reduction can return huge dividends.
Stress is a silent contributor to poor health.
Stress manifests differently depending on the individual, influencing numerous biological processes that begin in the brain and spread through nearly all body systems, including the adrenals, thyroid, neurotransmitter systems, digestive system, and heart.
Consistent stress over long periods can become a serious threat to maintaining lifelong wellness as so much energy is channeled into coping, ultimately leading to exhaustion. Keys to managing stress are exercise, and nutrition.
Stress depletes nutrients as the body deals with the effects of stress, which means eating right is important. Supplementing with a good multivitamin is a good idea too. Another tool to reduce stress is getting out and taking a walk. A brisk 30 minute walk can help change the chemistry in the body and help reduce the effects of stress.