Health for Beginners Part 1
The question of course is not why do I need health? The question is why do I need to work at it? The question is, in this day and age, why do I need EXTRA nutrition? The question is – well its all too confusing. One day its too much salt, then its not enough salt then its sugar then its fructose then its… its all too confusing. So why bother – I am fine. And of course the biggest of them all – if, IF, I was to do something – and not everything – where would I start? Great questions. And the simple answer is – it depends. So no simple answers then?
Well it depends on what state of health you are in now. It depends on how much exercise, physical activity you do now, it depends on what age you are now. It depends. But the best thing to do when you are starting, anything…is to start. And that’s what this little series will do – give you places to start.
Your question that began – in this day and age…the two main challenges we face in health, in this day and age is;
* our population
* we live longer
There has never been so many of us on this little planet as now. So we need highly efficient food systems and transport systems and storage systems and well -systems.
And when it comes to food and water all, all of those systems right now use chemical additives and genetic modifications to keep the food and water flowing to us (in developed )countries. And all those added chemicals and added genetic modification and food factories and chicken factories and cow factories mean in all that food we are eating, there’s less and less – food. Less and less nutrition.
And because we no longer have fixed places in society, because there’s more and more of everything,and more and more changes, and more and more activity and rush and speed – there more and more stress. Safe to say in the entire history of our world, there has never been so much widespread stress, real and imagined put upon us. Stress affects our health. Stress affects our blood pressure. Stress kills more of us than anything else on the planet.
Yes, on average, we live longer than say 200 years ago. But we live longer because of medicine patching us up. Not because we necessarily ‘healthier’. So we love longer with more stress and less nutrition than ever before. Patched up when necessary.
Its not what you could call optimal health. If you and we are going to live so long.Lets live with the best health for the longest possible time, and take advantage of our long lives.
4 simple keys to health.
1) nutrition – make sure the food you eat is nutritious (that is, its gives your body not just the energy it needs, but all the tools it needs to stay functioning and optimal) and because that is almost impossible in this day and age – you should supplement your diet with things that make up for the lost nutrition. For instance vitamins and minerals and herbs (usually in tablet form) that add the ‘food’ to your food.
2) Stay active. Your body needs activity to stay functioning. It need activity to keep its muscles and arteries and heart and lungs and organs and bones functioning.
Go outside. walk outside, run outside, every day. You need sunshine. You need outside air (good or bad as it may be) you need activity. You need vitamin D from the sun. If you live in a place that had long winters with little sun, take extra vitamin D (see later in the series- Part 2)
3) Sleep when you sleep. Relax and have at least 7 hours sleep a day.And if you can,set aside 15mins every day or so of “quiet time”.Relax time. Sit and breathe.Don’t think, don’t fidget, don’t read, don’t watch TV. 15 mins off shut down time. Relax.
4) Have a goal in your life. Goals. Something to look forward to.Find and cultivate friends, true friends. Hope and expectation are the nutrition of our mental being. Depression like stress kills us. Have goals. Not driven ambitions. Better, simpler,things – something to look forward to. Something in the future you can enjoy, and share.Especially -have someone to share your good things with.( cat a dog, a person)
NEXT IN THE SERIES
-Part 2 Simple nutrition
-Part 3 simple exercise and relaxation techniques
-Part 4 Controlling stress
-Part 5 Explaining some of the new terms and health fashions.
Martin Gover and health
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