For a long and happy life, a healthy body is needed. But it is not easy to keep anybody’s health for there are many temptations in life and many myths that can mislead anyone who hears it. Which is why debunking health myths are a must to anyone pursuing a long, healthy life.
Here are the health tips proven by studies:
Snacking for Long Life
In a Japanese study, people who consumed the most soy were the least likely to die over the course of the 7-year study period. Eating soy-based snacks, such as roasted soy nuts or steamed edamame (soybeans), instead of low-nutrition chips or crackers can help boost your intake of heart-protective soy.
Beta Carotene is Best
Make sure you don’t go overboard with vitamin A. It could be bad for your bones. A recent animal study revealed that too much vitamin A may increase the risk of bone thinning. To protect yourself from the risks of vitamin A toxicity, choose a supplement that contains vitamin A in the form of beta carotene, a nutrient that the body converts to vitamin A only as needed.
Express Your Anger
Expressing your anger may not always be a bad thing. A recent study revealed that men who occasionally engaged in moderate levels of anger expression when they were upset had a lower risk of heart disease compared to men who never expressed their anger. When you need to blow off steam, choose a safe, healthy outlet for angry feelings, such as putting your thoughts down on paper or venting to an impartial friend.
Keep the Fiber-Filled Carbs
If you’re cutting back on carbohydrates in your diet, be sure to cut the low-nutrition carbs and keep most of the fiber-filled ones. Studies have revealed numerous health benefits from eating fiber-filled carbohydrates, including a potential reduction in symptoms related to pre-diabetes syndrome. Fiber-filled carbs include high-fiber fruits and vegetables, as well as whole-grain breads or cereals. Instead, reduce the low-nutrition carbs, such as white bread, pasta, white rice, and alcoholic beverages.
Mini Cutbacks
Reducing your food intake by a single cookie or an extra slice of bread each day may be enough to keep the pounds from creeping on with the passing years. Most people tend to gain weight as they age. However, researchers speculate that cutting as few as 100 calories from a person’s daily diet may be enough to thwart middle-age spread. One hundred calories would be equal to about a 1-ounce cookie, a medium slice of French bread, or three or four forks full of pasta.
Weight-Friendly Fats
Set yourself up for weight loss success by keeping some healthy fats in your diet.
In a recent study, people who followed a reduced-calorie diet that contained a moderate amount of unsaturated fat lost more weight compared to people who followed a reduced-calorie diet that was very low in fat. What’s more, people who followed the moderate-fat diet were more likely to stick with their eating plan.
Get Quality Sleep
In order to have a healthy body, there are three things to be concerned about: exercise, diet and quality sleep. This is because lack of sleep results negatively to your body, from your insulin resistance to wrecking the balance of your appetite hormones. All of this will lead a person to have reduced physical and mental performance. Studies have shows that a short sleep is linked to a 89% increased risks of obesity in children and 55% in adults.
Drink Adequate Amounts of Water
Drinking water already has a lot of good benefits for the body. It quenches your thirst, reduces anxiety and helps with memory function. However, one of the biggest benefits for the human body is that it helps increase rate of calories you burn. Two studies related to water have revealed that drinking enough water can boost the metabolism by 24-30% over a period of 1-1.5 hours. Another study even shows that drinking half a liter of water, 30 minutes before each meal can increase weight loss by 44%.
Take Vitamin D3 Supplements
You can naturally get Vitamin D when sunbathing in the sun. Unfortunately, that may not be possible in this day and age, where people don’t get much sun as they either live where there is no sun or stay inside most of the time. Vitamin D is beneficial in many ways, from improving bone health, increase strength and reduce symptoms of depression. Since Vitamin D is also crucial for our immune system, another choice of getting our fill of this vitamin is by drinking supplements. Vitamin D combined with calcium in particular can help reduce the risk of contracting cancer.
Do you have any other health tips that you follow? Share your tips in the comments section below!
