Living A Healthy Lifestyle

When was the last time you visited a medical practitioner, when you did not need to? Most of us go only under duress, when we feel that we will not be able to get any better if we do not get any professional advice.

Nowadays, however, the importance of an annual health check-up has become common knowledge. Almost all corporates have made it mandatory for their employees to undergo one, and in the process it is hoped that even the families will undergo a check-up.

The most important motivation for having regular check ups is to be able to keep a watch on the hidden mechanisms of our body. Many diseases do not have an outward manifestation in the form of pain or fever. Breast cancer is first seen in the form of a very small lump. Uterine cancer is found only by a Pap test.

Regular checkups are also needed in order to keep our blood pressure and blood sugar under control, specially if we are young.

The checkups also help you to keep track of your body parameters and a watch on your vital signs

The basic tests done during a health check :

Medical History: The doctor will ask you questions about your previous history, so that he has some idea of your present health.

Physical Test: These include things like a pap smear, mammography, a treadmill test, and cardio tests.

Lab tests: These include comprehensive blood tests and urine and stool tests. The tests being conducted differ for each age group, ranging from tests for prostrate cancer and bone densitometry for Osteoporosis.

Do not delay it, go and get one done as soon as possible. It will be time and money well spent.

There are many people in this world who believe that they never fall sick. After all, they are such healthy specimens, life has been kind to them and they have never felt the need to visit a doctor or to go and buy a medicine.

This seems like a feasible scenario, but only if it is the truth. Are they really that healthy, or are they just living in a world of illusions? Are they ignoring niggling problems in the hope that they will just go away? Or are they really a picture of health?

If you are really healthy, and honestly, never fall sick, congratulations. You are truly blessed.

But if you are just fooling yourself, that approach is not good for you. The situation can be reversed any day.

Let us have a quick look at how you can harm yourself by having the wrong attitude:

Minor illnesses such as a bad stomach or a headache are good for you – they make you step back from a hectic lifestyle and take a few hours of rest.

If you feel you are immune to catching infectious diseases, you will not take the precaution of avoiding places where these are likely to be in abundance.

Prevention is always better than cure. Do take the precautions needed to avoid illness. Take vitamins supplements, your body needs them as investment for the future. You may feel you do not need them now, but they just help to build up the reserves in your system.

Basically, it all leads up to the fact that an easy going attitude and a belief in your infallibility is the wrong approach to life. Good health is a boon, but do not take it for granted.

The general public often confuses both these disease as being the same, they are similar but they affect the body in different ways. Spondylosis is caused by the degenerative arthritis of the joints between the centra of the spinal vertebrae. Spondilitis is an inflammation of the vertebra.

Both of these problems can cause severe discomfort and can make movement of the body a painful process. They can often cause major changes in the mobility and flexibility of the patients, thereby leading to a sedentary lifestyle.

However, you can make a few changes in your lifestyle to adjust to this situation and thereby make things easier for yourself, and thus lead a relatively healthier life.

• Use a firm mattress and pillow; this will help to alleviate your pain while you are sleeping.
• Do regular exercises, under the supervision of your doctor or physical therapist.
• If you have cervical spondylitis, use a seat belt in the car, and a cervical collar while travelling.
• Do not lift heavy weights.
• Do not sit or lie still for long periods.
• Control your weight. Excess weight aggravates the situation to great extent.
• Place a small cushion behind your back when you are travelling in a car. This helps to maintain a good posture.
• Try physiotherapy to help relieve the pain and the stiffness. It is one of the most effective means of curing spondilitis.

A hot shower in the morning has been known to alleviate the pain to some degree.

All of us believe that we lead very healthy lives, after all we eat well, we occasionally exercise and we feel healthy. However, most of us do not realise that some of these so called healthy living practices that we follow are actually not contributing to our body’s well being and are just part of the global folklore.

1. Vitamins will increase your strength and endurance: Most vitamins just get washed away in the urine before the body can assimilate them. They only work as supplements, and cannot replace the nutrition provided by food.
2. Skipping breakfast is the best way to lose weight :  It is not. A good healthy breakfast will prevent you from snacking later and will give you the energy you need to start the day well.
3. All fat is bad for you: Your body needs fat is some form, so if you cut it out, it will leave no reserves in your body. What is important is to concentrate on the type of fat you eat.
4. Some foods are all bad : This is not true. All foods are not inherently bad, it is how your body adapts to them that is important. Some foods may be good for you, some may not suit you at all. Though it can be said that some foods like processed foods might actually be bad.
5. If you are exercising regularly, you will never be sick: The body had various reasons to fall sick, exercise only helps to keep you healthy and less likely to get minor illnesses
6. Chocolates are bad for you : Not necessarily, they are bad if you eat them in large quantities. A small amount will give you an energy boost.
7. I do not need too much sleep : You may not, but your body does need the sleep. It needs rest.
8. Health check-ups are only needed for the older generation : Wrong, all of us need it no matter how young we are.
9. Fruits and vegetables are only needed for the vegetarians : Once again you have to remember that your body needs all types of food. Do not avoid any.
10. I can cope with the stress, I am healthy : No one can cope with the stress for long periods. It will take its toll somewhere.

A life without parties and without a gathering of friends to drink, eat and be merry?

How can anyone live like that?

Let us enjoy ourselves, but let us all remember some golden rules while doing so.

Drink in moderation:

An age-old moral code, but we tend to forget this when we are out with friends. Excess alcohol can harm you in many ways, and leads to more accidents than anything else.

Watch out – here comes temptation in the form of desserts:

Desserts add more to your girth than any other food. They also raise your sugar levels, cause indigestion and can lead to the all familiar heavy feeling. Eat very small quantities of the desserts, if you must. Cut down on something else if you are planning to eat the dessert.

Keep a watch on the quantity of food you consume:

If you follow one golden rule, you will be much better off. Do not take a second helping! How much can you fill in one plate? Just eat that much and learn not to take a second helping. There are few better ways to control the quantity of food eaten.

Avoid fried foods:

They are the killers, they look good, they taste good and we never know when to stop. So just avoid them, you will do yourself a favour.
Enjoy yourself when you go to a party, but take a little bit of care,  and you will remain healthy and happy.

Just a “slight” pain? Take care – it may be the harbinger of a bigger problem

A slight pain in the leg? A minor ache in the chest? A mild headache?

We have all had these niggling aches and pains and most of the time we have taken an over the counter painkiller and forgotten about them. Often we rely upon a Tylenol or an Ibuprofen for a day or so and hope that the pain will go away.

Usually the pain does go away, sometimes it comes back a few days later and once again we pop in a few more pills and forget about it. We also forget the fact that a few days earlier we had had the same pain and we had taken the same pills.

A light pain which recurs should never be ignored. It could be symptomatic of some problems in the body and the pain may just be an outer manifestation of it. There are many instances of where a recurring pain was the first sign of greater problem.

Pain is a guide, it should neither be suppressed with drugs, nor should it be ignored.

Abdominal pain could be the sign of a digestive problem, or even of a pulled muscle.

A recurring headache could be a migraine problem, or the symptom of a problem with the nerves of the brain.

Pain in the legs could be a sign of arthritis or of sciatica or of swollen blood vessels.

Do not think that every pain is the sign of a major illness; just do not ignore a recurring mild pain.

Do you smoke or do you sit in close proximity to someone who smokes? Or do you work in an environment where there is lingering cigarette smoke?

Then you are likely to be an inhaler of passive smoke or secondhand smoke as it has often been termed. People who smoke not only endanger their own lives, but they also expose all those around them to the potential risks.

There are many ways in which passive smoke can hurt you:

Asthma: Passive smoke aggravates the problems of asthmatics and increases the frequency of their attacks.

Ear, nose and throat infections: There is increasing documentation of the increase in these infections which result from inhaling passive smoke.

Lung cancer: A series of studies in UK, USA and Australia have showed a definite correlation between the exposure to passive smoke and the incidence of lung cancer.

Low Birth weight: When pregnant women come in contact with passive smoke, the birth weight of the baby is generally lower than average.

Exposure to children: Children of smoking parents inhale nicotine equivalent to 60 to 150 cigarettes in a year. Hence they also imbibe the ill-effects of nicotine.

Risk of stroke: There is an 80% increase in the chances of having a stroke if you are a habitual inhaler of passive smoke.

Toxicity: Research in Europe has proven that tobacco fumes are 30% more toxic than car exhaust fumes.

So, if you are being exposed to passive smoke, either regularly or occasionally, try to get the other person to stop, or to smoke outside your environment.

Your health lies in your hands, take care of it.

About Author: Kylie Robinson is a well-informed individual, student, professional webmaster, and exceptional blogger that wishes to share their knowledge on the human growth hormone. She offers informative articles regarding HGH, including tips on how to purchase HGH, and how to find the best HGH supplements such as GenF20.

So many of us spend our waking hours chasing deadlines and elusive goals and hard to find spare time. Few of us realize that in order to be less stressed and to lead a happier and healthier life we need to organize ourselves. Not only will this process be good for our mental health but also for our physical well-being.

De-clutter the area around you:

The most obvious first step is to de-clutter your environment. If your home or your office is cluttered, you will spend most of your time searching through the mess. Once everything is in place and you have less things to manage, life becomes much simpler and less stressful. Organized living space looks better, saves effort and leads to positive vibes among all those who live there.

Learn to organize your time:

Being organized vis-a-vis time does not mean that you lose all the spontaneity and fun out of life. It means that you do not waste time and you have more spare time for yourself. Once you have more time, it naturally follows that you will be able to indulge in activities that you enjoy, and joy and pleasure shall follow.

Set goals and boundaries:

Do not try to do everything at the same time. Set achievable goals and boundaries, and map out a plan to achieve them. An organized life style leads to a better state of mind, and to more time to sit back and relax. This is all that is needed for a healthier lifestyle.

Music is food for the soul – all of us agree with that – it is an accepted idiom. But did you know that music is good for your physical health also. It has many beneficial consequences, and often works in conjunction with medical treatments for any ailments.

Relieves Stress:

Medical research has proven that the positive vibes of music help to negate the negative vibes of stress. When you are tired or agitated, just sitting back and getting lost in the sounds of your favorite music can help you calm down. It also helps in relieving the symptoms of depression and anxiety. Good music may not take away the cause of the anxiety but can help decrease the levels of distress that you may feel.

Helps you sleep better:

Listening to peaceful and relaxed music at night can lull your body into a state of relaxed slumber. However, if you are fond of more jazzier music, just listening to it before you retire can make you feel all is well with the world, and thus get a good night’s sleep.

Heart rates:

Medical practitioners are increasingly using music therapy to help control the heart rate of their patients. Listening to music can lead to a slower breathing and heart rate and also a relaxed response to the treatment being provided.

Think back, how often has just a few minutes of listening to music helped you to feel better and healthier and brighter. Do it more often, after all your health is of great importance.

As we are becoming more aware of the ravages of climate change and of the effects of an unhealthy environment, many of us are turning to solutions to make our homes and lives more green. We are taking small but sure steps towards a basic lifestyle change and thereby leading to a healthier life and home.

Organic food:

All of us are aware of the various kinds of organic foods available in the market. These do not have any preservatives or chemicals added to them, and are naturally grown. Increased use of these food items helps to decrease the chemical intake in our bodies and to decrease the toxics in digestive systems.

Be outdoors more often – try walking and aerobic exercises as means of keeping fit:

Step out of your closed environments. Try walking as an exercise, or try to do aerobics to keep fit. This will help you because you will be breathing fresh air, and also you will be less dependent on machines for your physical fitness.

Reduce carbon footprints by driving green and car pooling:

Try to commute with others – use a car pool or buy hybrid cars. This will decrease the stress on you since you will be driving through traffic jams less often, and also you will be leaving less of a carbon footprint for your children

Reduce use of chemicals for cleaning:

Use natural cleaning agents in your home. There are many new ones available now, which do not have too many pollutants added to them. Thus you will leave lees of a residue behind for everyone to inhale.