Cultivating A Healthy Lifestyle Is Still The Number One Tip For Optimum Health

Right now, in this vast information age, there is numerous advice regarding diets, food fads, what to eat, what not to eat, Keto diet, vegans, flexitarian, vegetarianism, gluten-free, lactose-free, and so and so forth.

What is important for all to know regarding all the advice is that the body has the ability to heal itself. Give the body that opportunity and chance by feeding it what it needs to do well. Simply put, take responsibility for your health to reap a huge dividend in the end.

''When food is correct, there will be no medicine.'' Ayurveda Proverb.

I do not necessarily endorse any particular diet or meal plan, but here are ten essential ingredients to better health:

Ten Essential Ingredients To Optimum Health

1. Eat Nutrients Dense Foods

This is to boost your vitamins and minerals intake. Vitamins and minerals are essential for bodybuilding. Fruits and vegetables are the world's most superfoods, especially when eaten in the natural forms, as they have natural healing properties. They should be varied for maximum nutrients. An ideal meal in a day should be mainly fruits and vegetables, greens, nuts and seeds, and minimal animal protein.

2. Eliminate Poor Food Choices

The worst foods are those laden with refined sugar in any form, both straight or hidden. Foods with hidden sugars include, among others, most sauces, tomato ketchup, mayonnaise, fruit juices, and fizzy drinks.

You have to get rid of bad habits too. These are smoking, drinking too much alcohol, inactivity, and eating too much food.

3. Maintain A Normal PH (Potential Of Hydrogen) Balance In The Body

The importance of PH balance in the body cannot be underestimated. Most health shops and pharmacists now store PH test strips for home use. PH measures the level of acidity and alkalinity in the body, and it is very important to maintain a healthy balance here.

PH level is measured compared to that of water. Water has a PH level of 7 (which is deemed to be neutral). So, anything above 7 is acidic, while below 7 is alkaline. A healthy PH balance is considered to be between 6 and 6.8. The body has a natural tendency to maintain a stable blood PH level, but the cells and intercellular functions are affected by acidosis.

Acidosis - means high body acidity, which can result in various diseases of metabolism syndrome. This includes cancer, kidney stone and water retention, headache, insomnia, and is susceptible to environmental toxins.

The body can get acidic from the diet, food/beverages, drugs, and when the normal metabolism is disturbed in one way or the order.

The cure for acidosis is simple. It is treated with diets of alkaline foods, mainly fruits, and vegetables.

On the other hand, alkalosis signifies that the body is too alkaline, caused by high bicarbonate in the blood or loss of acid. This is highly dangerous and causes comatose or death. This can be a bit complex to bring back to a safe level. However, one can consume acid-causing foods to bring alkalosis down. These include, among others, starchy foods, like rice, potatoes, bread, pasta-also coffee, alcohol, meat, most legumes, and eggs.

4. Your Gut Health Matters

It is important to maintain healthy gut for easier absorption and digestion of nutrients. A healthy gut kills harmful bacteria. Foods that can help kill harmful gut bacteria include, among others, garlic, ginger, apple cider vinegar, almonds, olive oil, and most fermented foods.

5. Practice Intermittent Fasting

Intermittent fasting is a healthy habit to cultivate, as it does give the digestive system a bit of rest. Because the body is unique, you decide what is best for you. Intermittent fasting can be a full fast where all foods and drinks are skipped for a longer period in a day, or where you decide on to say, skipping breakfast or not eating late, after 7 pm every day.

Benefits of intermittent fasting include giving your liver and stomach time to produce bile and enzymes needed for digestion, lower body weight, and cholesterol.

6. Drink Water Often

The body contains about 60% water, and the brain is suspended in a fluid, so water is an essential part of the body. Water is lost from the body via urine, stool, sweat, and the water loss must be replaced; otherwise, the body is dehydrated. When this occurs, the body mechanism draws water from the stool to lubricate the colon, making the stool hard, and free flow from the large intestine is harder, resulting in constipation. Adequate water keeps the intestine moving, preventing constipation and proper bowel movement.

The body can only survive not drinking water for just three days. That is how water is essential to the body. Failing to drink enough water can also lead to kidney stone.

Choosing water in place of other beverages like tea, coffee, fizzy drinks, or chocolate drink can assist in weight loss and smoother skin.

7. Rest

Resting is an important aspect of maintaining good health. We all know how our body feels when we are tired or exhausted, so resting makes both the immune system and all body cells function properly. Resting also combats mental fatigue because brain function is improved. You decide what rest means to you. Your body knows it when it is rested.

8. Sleep

The body naturally regulates sleep showing us that this is an important need for the body. Research proves that the serotonin produced during sleep help with the restorative function of muscle growth, tissue repair, and protein synthesis. This is by producing T-cells, a key part of the body's immune system that fights infection.

A typical good sleep should average seven to eight hours a night. More can result in a calcium build-up on the heart arteries and less flexible leg arteries. So balance is the key here.

9. Live An Active Life

An active life must include regular but reasonable exercise to keep blood flow through the entire system by keeping the muscle of the heart pumping blood and trim the muscle.

Exercise need not be gym-based, strenuous, or difficult type. Here it is important to know your body and not overdo it.

You can have the simple stretch at home, a walk in the park, engage in house-work, enrol in a dance class are all gainful activities for good and healthy living.

10. Have A Positive Mental Attitude

Research upon research has proven beyond measures how our life is shaped by how we view things in life. Do you see life in rose-coloured glasses or the dark shade one? Life gives things to you as you desire or see it. This simply means, ask how things you desire can be done instead of believing it cannot be done.

''A strong positive mental attitude will create more miracles than any wonder drug.'' Patricia Neal

Don't be blinded by walking aimlessly through life. Be responsible for your own experience because life is not on autopilot that will take away the needed hard work you must put into it.

Your own experience is unique, so there's no need for comparison. Love yourself and be grateful for what you have.

The Takeaways

Maintaining a healthy lifestyle day in, day out is not easy but doable. So you should be asking how and believing that it is possible. Do not believe that those who have good health and maintain a healthy lifestyle are lucky.

''We must all suffer one of two things: the pain of discipline or the pain of regret.'' Jim Rohn

As said earlier, you have to work to achieve good things in life, until you are ready to put some effort forward, is when your effort will be rewarded. Make sure you remove unhealthy foods, like pizzas, fries, doughnuts, etc., from your pantry. This will help when you don't have bad food choices.

We are creatures of habits, so start incorporating these good choices daily, and soon it will become part of you.

Even if you have had a bad or poor lifestyle in the past, it is never late to do a turn around towards living a healthier one. Your body will thank you for it.

Note: This article appeared in Number One Tip Publication In January 2021