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Mind, Body, Soul
Oh, Those Nasty Habits
By Mona Lease
Greetings, Gals!! Keep reaching - Keep Stretching! Consider the following.
50 Unhealthiest Habits on the Planet - Michael Martin
You're Not Laughing Enough: Life can be tough, but it's important to
maintain a sense of humor.
You're Self-Diagnosing on the Internet: This is a large gripe of many
doctors who say you might be second-guessing yourself out of
good care.
You're Accepting Sleep Problems as "Just Part of Getting Older:"
This is a misconception. Without adequate sleep your body can
not adequately repair and recharge.
You're Skipping Sunscreen: One in five of us will get diagnosed
with a skin cancer by the age of 70. Avoid tanning beds. Apply
sunscreen daily.
You're Not Treating Acid Reflux: This is heartburn. If you're exper-
iencing this regularly, it's not a good idea to keep popping the
antacids. Stomach acids damage the sensitive lining of the
esophagus.
You're Skipping Annual Eye Exams: Your eye doctor can detect
"silent killers" of vision like glaucoma and detect bleeding or
swelling of the retina.
You're Not Getting Annual Skin Cancer Checks: Melanoma is the
deadliest form of skin cancer. Get checked. There are areas of
your body you can not see.
You Don't Know Your Blood Pressure: High blood pressure
weakens the walls of blood vessels and increases the risk of
stroke, heart attack, and dementia.
You're Not Drinking Enough Water: We need water to function
optimally. Recommendation: 7 cups of water every 24 hours.
You're Avoiding Sex: Regular sexual activity is good for your heart,
lowers blood pressure, reduces stress, and improves sleep.
You're Not Doing Kegel Exercises: Kegels strengthen the pelvic
floor...which supports the uterus, bladder, small intestines, and
the rectum.
You're Working a Desk Job: "Sitting is the new smoking." Stand
and move as much as possible during the day.
You're Eating Ultra-Processed Foods: Ultra-processed foods are
sausages, mayonnaise, potato chips, pizza, cookies, chocolate,
candies, sweet beverages, whiskey, gin, and rum. Avoid these.
You're Eating Too Much Salt: This is a major risk for high blood
pressure. Don't add salt. Limit fast foods and processed foods.
You're Skipping an Annual Mammogram After Age 45: Get your
annual exam.
You're Dismissing Ovarian Symptoms: The "silent killer"..symptoms
include bloating, pelvic and abdominal pain, feel full quickly..
get checked.
You're Ignoring Your Family History: Pay attention. Get checked.
You're Not Taking Steps to Prevent a Stroke: Keep your blood
pressure and weight in a healthy range. Don't smoke. Limit
your alcohol intake.
You're Looking at Screens Before Bed: The blue light from com-
puters, smartphones, and tvs disturbs your natural circadian
rhythm. Turn these off 60 minutes before bedtime.
You Don't Know Your Cholesterol Levels: Keep "bad" cholesterol
levels down by eating a low saturated fat diet and avoiding trans
fats. Exercise regularly and maintain a healthy weight.
You're Drinking Too Much: Women should drink no more than
one alcoholic beverage a day.
You're Not Treating Signs of Depression: Talk to your doctor.
Many treatments are available.
You're Not Getting Tested for STIs: Talk to your doctor about your
sexual health, safer sex practices, and STI testing.
You're Not Following Colon Cancer Screening
Recommendations: Get that first colonoscopy. Follow the doctor's
advice.
You're Smoking: Quit smoking ASAP.
You're Not Getting an Annual Diabetes Test: Get an annual test.
You're Avoiding Twice-Annual Dental Check-Ups: Get checked.
Practice good oral hygiene daily.
You're Not Getting Enough Exercise: Moderate-intensity exercise
is a brisk walk, dancing, and gardening.
You're Not Drinking Coffee: Enjoy coffee in moderation.
You're Not Getting Enough Sleep: Adults need 7-9 hours of sleep
nightly.
You're Snoring: The airway behind the tongue collapses when you
breathe in, reducing or stopping the airflow. See your doctor.
You're Eating Too Much Saturated Fat: Eat no more than 3 moder-
ate servings of red meat each week. No more than 13 grams of
saturated fat per day.
You're Oversleeping: 7-9 hours a night is good. More sleep may
increase the risk of heart disease and dementia.
You're Socially Isolated: Loneliness and social isolation can in-
crease your risk of a heart attack. Hit the gym, develop hobbies,
take classes, volunteer.
You're Drinking Sugary Beverages: Empty calories are bad for your
waistline and heart. Hydrate with classic H2O, seltzers without
artificial sweeteners or flavors. Make homemade spa water.
You're Drinking Diet Soda: Multiple studies show people who drink
diet sodas or artificially sweetened beverages have a higher risk
of "metabolic syndrome" - this is when the body can't process in-
sulin, leading to weight gain, diabetes, osteoporosis, decline in
kidney function. Drink water.
You're Eating Too Much Added Sugar: Consume no more than
9 teaspoons of added sugar daily. This is the same as a 12
ounce can of soda.
You're Overweight: Know your healthy weight range. Eat a plant-
heavy diet, reduce your consumption of empty calories and pro-
cessed foods, get regular exercise.
You're Stressing Out: Stress, unchecked, can lead to high blood
pressure, heart disease, obesity, and diabetes. Be mindful of
stressful situations. Get regular physical activity.
You're Buying Low-Fat Food: Fat consumed in proper amounts
does not make you fat. Too many calories make you fat. Good
fats include fatty fish, olive oil, nuts, avocados.
You're Not Getting An Annual Flu Shot: Risk of a heart attack in-
creases by up to 10 times in the days and weeks after an acute
flu infection. Get an annual shot.
You're Not Eating Enough Omega-3: These are found in salmon,
leafy green vegetables, nuts, flaxseeds. Eat salmon once or
twice a week. Choose wild caught, not farmed fish. Grill, steam
or pan roast the fish. Do not fry or saute.
You're Not Treating Diabetes: If you take medication for your
diabetes, stay compliant. Follow any recommendations for diet
and exercise.
You're Taking Sleeping Pills: Try meditation or relaxation before re-
questing a prescription.
You're Lying to Your Doctor: Be candid. Your doctor is your con-
fidential partner is your health care.
You're Drinking Sports Drinks: Only drink sports drinks when you
are in the middle of exercising. Go for just water and a bite-sized
snack of fruit or nuts otherwise.
You're Ordering ED Drugs From Online Pharmacies: Talk to your
doctor. The risk that these imported drugs are counterfeit, con-
taminated, or subpar is high.
You're Chasing Fads: You need good sleep, good food, and
regular exercise in that order. Repeat daily.
You're Eating Restaurant Food or Take Out Too Often: Eat out
occasionally. Cooking at home lets you know how much salt
and fat is going into your meal.
You're Eating Too Many Canned Foods: The BPA from the lining of
the aluminum can disrupts the thyroid function. Cook with whole
foods.
"Finding yourself" is not how it works. You aren't a toddler or a bill
in last winter's coat pocket. You are not lost. Your true self is right
there buried under cultural conditions, other people's opinions, and
inaccurate conclusions you drew as a kid that became your beliefs about
who you are. Finding yourself is actually returning to yourself. ..an
unlearning, an excavation, a remembering who you were before the world
got it's hands on you. - Emily McDaniel
The best is yet to be!!
"Sometimes all you need is for someone to just be there, even if they
can't solve your problems., Just knowing there is someone who cares can
make all the difference.+ - sun.gazing.com MONA
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