Happy New Year and welcome back to work. When it comes to your health you should plan 2020 as a year with good health. A healthy lifestyle is important in the prevention of chronic diseases. With the New Year, decide to lead a healthy life to control the risk of diseases. Here are some simple healthy practices which you can follow in the New Year to control the risk of several diseases.
Instead of resolutions, try daily actions: Making decisions to live a healthy life is very important. But it has been found that more than 92 percent of people do not achieve their resolutions. Hence, daily healthy habits are more achievable than yearly resolutions.
Eat Real Food: It is better to eat food in their natural state. Organic vegetables and fruits are filled with antioxidants, phytonutrients, vitamins, and minerals—basically, everything we need to support a healthy body. Eating a wide variety of fruits and veggies is always a healthy choice. When you look at your plate make sure 80% is fresh or lightly cooked vegetables.
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Minimise Processed Food Intake: Healthy fats are important for providing energy, healthy cell membranes, and hormone balance. This can be found in avocado, coconut oil, olives, nuts, seeds, unheated olive and flax oil, clean salmon, nuts and seeds. Stay away from margarine, vegetable shortening, fried foods, and anything with “partially hydrogenated” oil listed in the ingredients.
Drink Water: Drink 8 glasses of clean water a day. Drinking enough water maintains fluid balance, which transports nutrients, regulates body temperature and digests food. Dehydration lowers energy levels and brain function.
Make exercise FUN, not a chore: The best way to do this is to figure out what kind of exercise you find fun!
Get enough sleep: Sleep is important and a lot of people tend not to prioritize it enough. If you aren’t sleeping enough, you are setting yourself up to fail, health-wise. It is possible to be doing everything right – eating well, exercising regularly – and yet feel like crap and can’t lose weight. Often, one of the biggest reasons for this is because sleep is not enough.
Stay stress-free: Too much stress can take a toll on your health. It can increase the risk of serious health issues. Stress can affect your day to day tasks as well. Try practices that can help you fight stress naturally. Exercise more often, meditate and stay organised to tackle stress.
Have a healthy 2020!
Ade Alakija, medical director Q-Life Family Clinic & Bukola Adeniyi, Consultant Family physician and travel medicine physician Q-Life Family Clinic.
