A traditional Japanese diet today consists of some 11-15 servings of vegetables? Meanwhile, our USDA food pyramid recommends a paltry 3-5. Knowing that there’s a multitude of vitamins, minerals, fiber, and other nutrients available in these rainbow colored foods should be all we need to hear to get us on the veggie bandwagon. These colorful plant foods also contain antioxidants, which scavenge free radicals (causing cell damage and aging), aid longevity and youthfulness, and fight cancer. They cleanse the blood, offer hydration and healthy sugars, support the liver, regulate cholesterol levels, and promote healthy elimination. It doesn’t hurt that they taste delicious either! Make it a goal to put a rainbow on your plate.
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healthy lifestyle
Wellness Tip ~ Healthy Changes
Asking ‘Is red meat good or bad?’ is useless,” said Meir Stampfer, professor of epidemiology and nutrition and senior author of the study. “It has to be ‘Compared to what?’ If you replace burgers with cookies or fries, you don’t get healthier. But if you replace red meat with healthy plant protein sources, like nuts and beans, you get a health benefit.”
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Wellness Tip ~ Relaxing
Ease anxiety with a Tibetan sky-gazing meditation.
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Look out the window (or look upward), relax your whole body, and let your gaze expand into the spaciousness of the sky, says Dean Sluyter, author Natural Meditation: A Guide To Effortless Meditative Practice. Repeat the ahhh sound silently—it’s the most open sound you can make, and it amplifies the feeling. Let your attention go, and sit for a few minutes.
Wellness Tip ~ Losing Weight
The easiest way to lose weight and improve your health? Ditch the white stuff! Most white foods (bread, rice, pasta, sugar, flour) are primarily made up of refined carbs and empty calories, so cutting them out of your diet is one of the quickest ways to shed pounds and improve your well-being, Dr. Oz says. There are a few exceptions to the rule, including egg whites, cauliflower, and fish, he says. Those are the only white foods you should have on hand.
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Wellness Tip ~ Walking
Work up to walking 10,000 steps a day. Start with walking the amount that you can do comfortably, such as 5,000 steps a day, then increase your steps until you reach 10,000 steps, putting you in the “active” category.
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Longevity Tip
What physical activity is best for healthy longevity?
The one you enjoy most, but also the one you can easily incorporate into your daily schedule and the one you can keep doing up to your hundredth birthday and beyond. . . . What’s important is working all your body parts with rigor — meaning to the point of breathing rapidly or sweating — for five to ten hours a week . . . It’s important to exercise, but not to overexercise, because knees, hips, and joints will eventually get damaged — particularly if you continue to exercise when you feel pain.
Wellness Tip
3 Wellness Tips
Floss daily to prevent the buildup of gum-disease-causing bacteria, which are increasingly being implicated in heart disease.
Prioritize sleep. Getting too few winks may lower your immunity and invite everything from obesity to accidents. Aim for a minimum of six nightly hours, says Luigi Ferrucci, director of the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging.
Flex your mental muscle by writing, reading, or playing games, such as crossword puzzles. Despite there being no proven way to cut the chances of Alzheimer’s, some research suggests that keeping the brain active from childhood on may somewhat armor against the disease.
Wellness Tip
4 Wellness Tips
- Learn ways to say “no” when something occurs that you do not want to do or be involved with.
- Have fun (go on a trip with someone you love, go shopping, go fishing; do not let vacation time slip away).
- Let yourself be pleased with your achievements, both big and small (develop contentment).
- Have a network of friends; those with strong social support systems lead healthier lives. SOURCE
Wellness Tip
How to Head Off a Headache
Start double-fisting beverages the minute the throbbing begins. “I’ll have a bottle of water in one hand and a coffee in the other,” says Jennifer Ashton, MD, author of Your Body Beautiful and cohost of ABC’s The Revolution. That’s because many headaches are caused by dehydration, while caffeine is known to curb them. If the drinks don’t alleviate the pounding in an hour, she pops ibuprofen.
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Wellness Tip
Wash the linens. Dust mites, a major allergy trigger, love to hang out in your bed. Zap ’em by laundering sheets and pillowcases every week in hot water.
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