What people do to stay healthy
As a result of various health education campaigns in various countries, most of us have become aware that if we want to lead a healthy and active life, we have to take care of our health from an early age. How is this to be done?
The first thing to do is to get rid of any health-damaging habits from our lives. Thus, smokers have to give up smoking because this is known to cause respiratory problems and, in extreme cases, lung cancer. Giving up smoking can also improve the health of non-smokers who are regularly in your company when you are smoking because the dangers of passive smoking are now widely known.
Likewise, people who know that they regularly drink too much should make a serious attempt to cut down on the amount of alcohol they drink. Health experts have issued guidelines, based on the number of units of alcohol that is safe to drink per week, and we should all stick to these. It is not only people who have been diagnosed as being alcoholics who are in danger of causing damage to their health as a result of heavy drinking. People who indulge in binge drinking, in particular, are also at risk.
Smoking and excessive drinking are obviously things that should be given up, in the interest of health, but this is negative advice. There is also a positive aspect to becoming healthy.
Health experts encourage us to take regular exercise in the interests of our health, but many people, like myself, do not, from choice, regularly take part in any particular form of physical exercise. We do not play football, tennis, squash or golf and we do not run marathons or go to the gym several times a week.
However, we can increase the extent of our physical exercise by a few simple measures which do not interfere too much with our way of life. For example, we can walk short distances instead of taking the car or bus, and we can walk or run upstairs instead of taking the lift.
I myself indulge in both of these health-enhancing forms of exercise. At first, I found it difficult to make myself walk instead of taking the car or jumping on a bus, but I soon got used to it. Also, at first, I used to get breathless climbing stairs, but now I run upstairs very easily without stopping for breath.
For the most part, however, I try to stay healthy by means of dieting. I am a great believer in the saying that “you are what you eat”. That does not mean that I am a follower of crash or fad diets. Not at all. Most of these are very bad for your health.
Principally, I try to eat a lot of fruits and vegetables. This is not difficult because I like them, but I also eat them in the interest of my health. It is a well-known fact that fruits and vegetables are very nutritious. I especially try to eat a lot of berries, such as raspberries, strawberries and blueberries, because these are high in antioxidants, which are thought to protect people against cancer.
I also try to make sure that my diet is low in fat. I do not wish my cholesterol level to get too high as this can lead to heart disease. I therefore try to avoid foods that contain a lot of fat such as butter or cream.
Sometimes people get ill, however careful they are of their health. However, we can do all in our power to make sure that we remain as healthy as possible.
