Thanks for Submitting…….Priscilla taken from http://www.health24.com/Lifestyle/Woman/Yourlife/45-best-health-tips-ever-20120721
Copy your kitty: Learn to do stretching exercises when you wake up. It boosts circulation
and digestion, and eases back pain.
- Don’t skip breakfast. Studies show that eating a proper breakfast is one of the most positive
things you can do if you are trying to lose weight. Breakfast skippers tend to gain weight. A balanced
breakfast includes fresh fruit or fruit juice, a high-fibre breakfast cereal, low-fat milk or yoghurt,
wholewheat toast, and a boiled egg. - Brush up on hygiene. Many people don’t know how to brush their teeth properly. Improper
brushing can cause as much damage to the teeth and gums as not brushing at all. Lots of people
don’t brush for long enough, don’t floss and don’t see a dentist regularly. Hold your toothbrush in the
same way that would hold a pencil, and brush for at least two minutes. This includes brushing the
teeth, the junction of the teeth and gums, the tongue and the roof of the mouth. And you don’t need a
fancy, angled toothbrush – just a sturdy, soft-bristled one that you replace each month. - Neurobics for your mind. Get your brain fizzing with energy. American researchers coined the
term ‘neurobics’ for tasks which activate the brain’s own biochemical pathways and to bring new
pathways online that can help to strengthen or preserve brain circuits. Brush your teeth with your
‘other’ hand, take a new route to work or choose your clothes based on sense of touch rather than
sight. People with mental agility tend to have lower rates of Alzheimer’s disease and age-related
mental decline. - Get what you give! Always giving and never taking? This is the short road to compassion fatigue.
Give to yourself and receive from others, otherwise you’ll get to a point where you have nothing left
to give. And hey, if you can’t receive from others, how can you expect them to receive from you? - Get spiritual. A study conducted by the formidably sober and scientific Harvard University found
that patients who were prayed for recovered quicker than those who weren’t, even if they weren’t
aware of the prayer. - Get smelly. Garlic, onions, spring onions and leeks all contain stuff that’s good for you. A study at
the Child’s Health Institute in Cape Town found that eating raw garlic helped fight serious childhood
infections. Heat destroys these properties, so eat yours raw, wash it down with fruit juice or, if you’re
a sissy, have it in tablet form. - Knock one back. A glass of red wine a day is good for you. A number of studies have found this,
but a recent one found that the polyphenols (a type of antioxidant) in green tea, red wine and olives
may also help protect you against breast cancer. It’s thought that the antioxidants help protect you
from environmental carcinogens such as passive tobacco smoke. - Bone up daily. Get your daily calcium by popping a tab, chugging milk or eating yoghurt. It’ll keep
your bones strong. Remember that your bone density declines after the age of 30. You need at least
200 milligrams daily, which you should combine with magnesium, or it simply won’t be absorbed. - Berries for your belly. Blueberries, strawberries and raspberries contain plant nutrients known
as anthocyanidins, which are powerful antioxidants. Blueberries rival grapes in concentrations of
resveratrol – the antioxidant compound found in red wine that has assumed near mythological
proportions. Resveratrol is believed to help protect against heart disease and cancer. - Curry favour. Hot, spicy foods containing chillies or cayenne pepper trigger endorphins, the
feel-good hormones. Endorphins have a powerful, almost narcotic, effect and make you feel good
after exercising. But go easy on the lamb, pork and mutton and the high-fat, creamy dishes served in
many Indian restaurants. - Cut out herbs before ops. Some herbal supplements – from the popular St John’s Wort and
ginkgo biloba to garlic, ginger, ginseng and feverfew – can cause increased bleeding during surgery,
warn surgeons. It may be wise to stop taking all medication, including herbal supplements, at least
two weeks before surgery, and inform your surgeon about your herbal use. - I say tomato. Tomato is a superstar in the fruit and veggie pantheon. Tomatoes contain
lycopene, a powerful cancer fighter. They’re also rich in vitamin C. The good news is that cooked
tomatoes are also nutritious, so use them in pasta, soups and casseroles, as well as in salads. The
British Thoracic Society says that tomatoes and apples can reduce your risk of asthma and
chronic lung diseases. Both contain the antioxidant quercetin. To enjoy the benefits, eat five apples
a week or a tomato every other day. - Eat your stress away. Prevent low blood sugar as it stresses you out. Eat regular and small
healthy meals and keep fruit and veggies handy. Herbal teas will also soothe your frazzled nerves.
Eating unrefined carbohydrates, nuts and bananas boosts the formation of serotonin, another feelgood drug. Small amounts of protein containing the amino acid tryptamine can give you a boost
when stress tires you out. - Load up on vitamin C.We need at least 90 mg of vitamin C per day and the best way to get this
is by eating at least five servings of fresh fruit and vegetables every day. So hit the oranges and
guavas! - No folly in folic acid. Folic acid should be taken regularly by all pregnant mums and people with
a low immunity to disease. Folic acid prevents spina bifida in unborn babies and can play a role in
cancer prevention. It is found in green leafy vegetables, liver, fruit and bran. - A for Away. This vitamin, and beta carotene, help to boost immunity against disease. It also
assists in the healing process of diseases such as measles and is recommended by the WHO. Good
natural sources of vitamin A are kidneys, liver, dairy products, green and yellow vegetables,
pawpaw, mangoes, chilli pepper, red sorrel and red palm oil. - Pure water. Don’t have soft drinks or energy drinks while you’re exercising. Stay properly
hydrated by drinking enough water during your workout (just don’t overdo things, as drinking too
much water can also be dangerous). While you might need energy drinks for long-distance running,
in shorter exercise sessions in the gym, your body will burn the glucose from the soft drink first,
before starting to burn body fat. Same goes for eating sweets. - GI, Jane. Carbohydrates with a high glycaemic index, such as bread, sugar, honey and grainbased food will give instant energy and accelerate your metabolism. If you’re trying to burn fat, stick
to beans, rice, pasta, lentils, peas, soya beans and oat bran, all of which have a low GI count. - Mindful living. You’ve probably heard the old adage that life’s too short to stuff a mushroom. But
perhaps you should consider the opposite: that life’s simply too short NOT to focus on the simple
tasks. By slowing down and concentrating on basic things, you’ll clear your mind of everything that
worries you. Really concentrate on sensations and experiences again: observe the rough texture of
a strawberry’s skin as you touch it, and taste the sweet-sour juice as you bite into the fruit; when
your partner strokes your hand, pay careful attention to the sensation on your skin; and learn to
really focus on simple tasks while doing them, whether it’s flowering plants or ironing your clothes. - The secret of stretching. When you stretch, ease your body into position until you feel the
stretch and hold it for about 25 seconds. Breathe deeply to help your body move oxygen-rich blood
to those sore muscles. Don’t bounce or force yourself into an uncomfortable position. - Do your weights workout first. Experts say weight training should be done first, because it’s a
higher intensity exercise compared to cardio. Your body is better able to handle weight training early
in the workout because you’re fresh and you have the energy you need to work it. Conversely,
cardiovascular exercise should be the last thing you do at the gym, because it helps your body
recover by increasing blood flow to the muscles, and flushing out lactic acid, which builds up in the
muscles while you’re weight training. It’s the lactic acid that makes your muscles feel stiff and sore. - Burn fat during intervals. To improve your fitness quickly and lose weight, harness the joys of
interval training. Set the treadmill or step machine on the interval programme, where your speed and
workload varies from minute to minute. Build up gradually, every minute and return to the starting
speed. Repeat this routine. Not only will it be less monotonous, but you can train for a shorter time
and achieve greater results. - Your dirtiest foot forward. If your ankles, knees, and hips ache from running on pavement,
head for the dirt. Soft trails or graded roads are a lot easier on your joints than the hard stuff. Also,
dirt surfaces tend to be uneven, forcing you to slow down a bit and focus on where to put your feet –
great for agility and concentration. - Burn the boredom, blast the lard. Rev up your metabolism by alternating your speed and
intensity during aerobic workouts. Not only should you alternate your routine to prevent burnout or
boredom, but to give your body a jolt. If you normally walk at 6.5km/h on the treadmill or take 15
minutes to walk a km, up the pace by going at 8km/h for a minute or so during your workout. Do this
every five minutes or so. Each time you work out, increase your bouts of speed in small increments. - Cool off without a beer. Don’t eat carbohydrates for at least an hour after exercise. This will
force your body to break down body fat, rather than using the food you ingest. Stick to fruit and fluids
during that hour, but avoid beer. - ‘Okay, now do 100 of those’. Instead of flailing away at gym, enlist the help – even temporarily
– of a personal trainer. Make sure you learn to breathe properly and to do the exercises the right
way. You’ll get more of a workout while spending less time at the gym. - Stop fuming. Don’t smoke and if you smoke already, do everything in your power to quit. Don’t
buy into that my-granny-smoked-and-lived-to-be-90 crud – not even the tobacco giants believe it.
Apart from the well-known risks of heart disease and cancer, orthopaedic surgeons have found that
smoking accelerates bone density loss and constricts blood flow. So you could live to be a 90-yearold amputee who smells of stale tobacco smoke. Unsexy. - Ask about Mad Aunt Edith. Find out your family history. You need to know if there are any
inherited diseases prowling your gene pool. According to the Mayo Clinic, USA, finding out what
your grandparents died of can provide useful – even lifesaving – information about what’s in store for
you. And be candid, not coy: 25 percent of the children of alcoholics become alcoholics themselves. - Do self-checks. Do regular self-examinations of your breasts. Most partners are more than
happy to help, not just because breast cancer is the most common cancer among SA women. The
best time to examine your breasts is in the week after your period. - My smear campaign. Have a pap smear once a year. Not on our list of favourite things, but it’s
vital. Cervical cancer kills 200 000 women a year and it’s the most prevalent form of cancer among
black women, affecting more than 30 percent. But the chances of survival are nearly 100 percent if
it’s detected early. Be particularly careful if you became sexually active at an early age, have had
multiple sex partners or smoke. - Understand hormones. Recent research suggests that short-term (less than five years) use of
HRT is not associated with an increase in the risk of breast cancer, but that using it for more than ten
years might be. Breast cancer is detected earlier in women using HRT, as they are more alert to the
disease than other women. - Beat the sneezes. There are more than 240 allergens, some rare and others very common. If
you’re a sneezer due to pollen: close your car’s windows while driving, rather switch on the internal
fan (drawing in air from the outside), and avoid being outdoors between 5am and 10 am when pollen
counts are at their highest; stick to holidays in areas with low pollen counts, such as the seaside and
stay away from freshly cut grass. - Doggone. If you’re allergic to your cat, dog, budgie or pet piglet, stop suffering the ravages of
animal dander: Install an air filter in your home. Keep your pet outside as much as possible and
brush him outside of the home to remove loose hair and other allergens. Better yet, ask someone
else to do so. - Asthma-friendly sports. Swimming is the most asthma-friendly sport of all, but cycling,
canoeing, fishing, sailing and walking are also good, according to the experts. Asthma need not
hinder peak performance in sport. 11 percent of the US Olympic team were asthmatics – and
between them they won 41 medals. - Deep heat. Sun rays can burn even through thick glass, and under water. Up to 35 percent of
UVB rays and 85 percent of UVA rays penetrate thick glass, while 50 percent of UVB rays and 77
percent of UVA rays penetrate a meter of water and wet cotton clothing. Which means you’ll need
sunscreen while driving your car on holiday, and water resistant block if you’re swimming. - Fragrant ageing. Stay away from perfumed or flavoured suntan lotions which smell of coconut
oil or orange if you want your skin to stay young. These lotions contain psoralen, which speeds up
the ageing process. Rather use a fake-tan lotion. Avoid sun beds, which are as bad as the sun itself. - Sunscreen can be a smokescreen. Sunscreen is unlikely to stop you from being sunburned, or
to reduce your risk of developing skin cancer. That’s because most people don’t apply it properly,
and stay in the sun too long. The solution? Slather on sunscreen daily and reapply it often,
especially if you’ve been in the water. How much? At least enough to fill a shot glass. - Laugh and cry. Having a good sob is reputed to be good for you. So is laughter, which has
been shown to help heal bodies, as well as broken hearts. Studies in Japan indicate that laughter
boosts the immune system and helps the body shake off allergic reactions. - It ain’t over till it’s over. End relationships that no longer work for you, as you could be
spending time in a dead end. Rather head for more meaningful things. You could be missing
opportunities while you’re stuck in a meaningless rut, trying to breathe life into something that is long
gone. - Strong people go for help. Ask for assistance. Gnashing your teeth in the dark will not get you
extra brownie points. It is a sign of strength to ask for assistance and people will respect you for it. If
there is a relationship problem, the one who refuses to go for help is usually the one with whom the
problem lies to begin with. - Save steamy scenes for the bedroom. Showering or bathing in water that’s too hot will dry out
your skin and cause it to age prematurely. Warm water is much better. Apply moisturiser while
your skin is still damp – it’ll be absorbed more easily. Adding a little olive oil to your bath with help
keep your skin moisturised too. - Here’s the rub. Improve your circulation and help your lymph glands to drain by the way you
towel off. Helping your lymph glands function can help prevent them becoming infected. When
drying off your limbs and torso, brush towards the groin on your legs and towards the armpits on
your upper body. You can do the same during gentle massage with your partner. - Sugar-coated. More than three million South Africans suffer from type 2 diabetes, and the
incidence is increasing – with new patients getting younger. New studies show this type of diabetes
is often part of a metabolic syndrome (X Syndrome), which includes high blood pressure and other
risk factors for heart disease. More than 80 percent of type 2 diabetics die of heart disease, so make
sure you control your glucose levels, and watch your blood pressure and cholesterol counts. - Relax, it’s only sex. Stress and sex make bad bedfellows, it seems. A US survey showed that
stress, kids and work are main factors to dampen libido. With the advent of technology that allows us
to work from home, the lines between our jobs and our personal lives have become blurred. People
work longer hours, commutes are longer and work pervades all aspects of our lives, including our
sexual relationships. Put nooky and intimacy on the agenda, just like everything else. - Good night, sweetheart. Rest heals the body and has been shown to lessen the risk of heart
trouble and psychological problems.