Nutrition. Vitamins. You.
If your Valentine’s Day tradition is to spend two hours sitting in the movie theater and then another two hours at a heavy (and unhealthy) dinner, we have some active and healthy new ideas for you this Valentine’s Day! If your partner loves to run …
Your eyes are similar to a camera. Like any camera, if your eye becomes damaged, you do not get a clear picture. Exposed to large amounts of stimulation daily, your eyes are able to efficiently process information at the blink of an eye (pun intended!). …
According to research from the University of Bonn in Germany, eating fast food is like giving your body a bacterial infection.
The obesity rate in the U.S. is a major health issue. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), more than one-third (36.5%) of U.S. adults have obesity. This is largely due to unhealthy diets and lifestyles; the Standard American Diet (SAD) is typically composed of heavy, highly-refined carbohydrates and sugar.
Numerous studies have shown that the rise in obesity rates could be attributed to an increase in calorie intake, coupled with a lack of adequate physical activity.
The Institute of Innate Immunity at the University of Bonn in Germany reports that the immune system reacts similarly to a high-fat and high-calorie diet as to bacterial infection. Unhealthy food seems to make the body’s defenses more aggressive in the long term; even after switching to a healthy diet, “inflammation towards innate immune stimulation is more pronounced.”
Scientists placed mice on a “western diet” for a month – high in fat, high in sugar, and low in fiber. The animals developed a strong inflammatory response throughout the body, almost like after an infection. Anette Christ posdoctoral lead in the study reports, “The unhealthy diet led to an unexpected increase in the number of certain immune cells in the blood of the mice. This was an indication for an involvement of immune cell progenitors in the bone marrow.” When researchers offered the rodents their typical cereal diet for another four weeks, the acute inflammation disappeared. What did not disappear was the genetic reprogramming of the immune cells and their precursors – “even after these four weeks, many of the genes that had been switched on during the fast food phase were still active.”
Director of the Institute, Prof. Dr. Eicke Latz, explains, “After an infection, the body’s defenses remain in a kind of alarm state, so they can respond more quickly to a new attack.”
Inflammatory responses can accelerate the development of vascular disease and type 2 diabetes. Researchers report that individuals born today will live on average, shorter lives than their parents – “Unhealthy diets and too little exercise likely play a decisive role in this.”
According to the Food Institute’s analysis of data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, millennial’s alone spend 44% of their budget’s food dollars on eating out. In comparison to 40 years ago, the average American family now spend half their food budget on restaurant food.
While the occasional night out won’t hurt, a habit of eating fast food can do a number on your health, according to Healthline. –
Some studies have shown that you can reverse the damage brought on by too much fast food by changing your diet and getting more exercise. Make healthier substitutes slowly; think: sweet potato fries instead of french fries or having 2% milk instead of whole milk. Be sure to have your cholesterol checked by your doctor. If it is high, follow a high-fiber diet rich in fruits, vegetables and whole grains. Get at least 30 minutes of aerobic exercise most days of the week. You should also get your BMI checked. If it is above 25 and you’re overweight, speak with your doctor on your weight loss options. Joyce Lee, M.D., MPH, says losing even 5% of your body weight can lower your risk of diabetes.
When you think of your bones, it is common to think of them as rigid, static and never changing. But, despite being a hard substance, your bones are very much alive, growing and changing throughout your life. This means, if our bones are nourished correctly, …
Photo by Autumn Goodman on Unsplash The skin is the largest organ in the body and it is responsible for many functions that contribute to our health and well-being. It protects the body against physical and chemical aggressions, serves as a sensorial receptor, regulates body …
Self-care is simply practicing personal healthy habits that are crucial to how you function. Self-care practices can be different for everyone, but their benefits have been shown to help each individual with focus, mood, and stress relief.
You have a busy day ahead of you. Whether it’s a long day of classes with essays and tests stacking up or you’re overwhelmed at work, your to-do list seems to be bursting at the seems. To make time for it all, you skip lunch, skip your workouts or decide not to meet your friends for dinner. It’s a common thought that forcing yourself into whatever you need to do – like stay up all night to study for a test or stay hours late at work to finish that presentation – will pay off in the end. But what happens when you become so overwhelmed that these tasks begin to effect your health?
When you abilities become worn, your skills aren’t as sharp, you’re losing focus and sleep and you become stressed, you should turn to some healthy self-care habits to get you back to your best you. If you are feeling these symptoms, you may want to focus your attention on some healthy self-care tips –
Self-care is important in order to maintain a healthy relationship with your health, especially your self-esteem and confidence. Make time throughout the day for yourself – enjoy a bubble bath, read a book, learn a new language!
When you’re overworked, stressed and disorganized, you are less productive. Take breaks at work or school to decompress – grab a healthy snack, take a quick walk, read a book!
Smart self-care habits like eating healthy and practicing mediation can really help your stress management and can lead to increased energy and productivity levels.
You cannot be physically healthy if you aren’t mentally healthy first. Care for both your physical and mental health by eating healthy, making sure to get adequate sleep, and exercise regularly.
When you feel like you don’t have any energy left, you may want to look into a nutrient that has been proven to help your body adapt to daily stress and fatigue – Rhodiola. It is an ancient herb used to support energy and well-being, by modulating the body’s response to stress and helping to generate cellular energy. It has also been shown to enhance exercise performance, reduce fatigue, stress and anxiety, support the immune system and boost endothelial health and cardiovascular health.† Click here to read more about Rhodiola!