Keep Calm and Eat, Move, Sleep!
During times like this, it is very important to protect yourself and others from infectious diseases. But it is also important to keep your body healthy so that your immune system stays strong.
3 natural ways to stay healthy and reduce your risk of disease:
EAT right. One of the best ways to stay healthy is to eat real, whole food. Get your essential nutrients from fresh, unprocessed food. That generally means eat food that does not have a label or come out of a box, i.e. from a factory. Instead, eat real foods found in nature: meat, vegetation. Vegetables and fruits are the richest, most bountiful sources of vitamins and minerals as well as fiber compared to other food we eat. They contain hundreds of thousands of phytochemicals, and many of these contain disease-fighting properties that a laboratory can’t duplicate.
MOVE more. Staying physically active is another thing you can do that can do to stay healthy and reduce your risk of disease. Light to moderate exercise reduces your risk of back pain but also reduces your risk of cancer, heart disease, high blood pressure, obesity, and depression. And now especially, get outside and move. The weather is moderating right now, and the outside air is fresh. Get outside and take a walk. Spring clean your yard. Go bird watching. Ride your bike. Go to your favorite park. Plant some flower bulbs. Wash your car. Maybe take down your Christmas lights. Get up and move.
SLEEP better. Sleep is a vital, often neglected, component of staying healthy and reducing your risk of disease. Sleep is important because it enables the body to repair and be fit and ready for another day. Getting adequate rest may also help prevent excess weight gain, heart disease, and increased illness duration. While sleep requirements vary slightly from person to person, most healthy adults need between 7 to 9 hours of sleep per night to function at their best. And despite the notion that our sleep needs decrease with age, most older people still need at least 7 hours of sleep.