How many of you change your oil regularly? How many of you keep your kitchen and bathroom clean? How many of you check the batteries in your smoke detector several times a year? Hopefully, all of you do these things regularly. After all, taking care of the things you need ensures those things are ready when called upon to perform for your well-being.
And yet, how many of you neglect your body's health needs?
It's easy to see (and smell) the results of not cleaning the kitchen. It is quite obvious when your car is having trouble from lack of attention. However, our bodies are quite dynamic and resilient, and it can take a long time for lack of attention to show symptoms. Often, by the time we realize something is wrong, we've already forgotten what we did to lead to the problem.
For instance, thousands of people are diagnosed annually with skin cancer. Of those, very few received the sun damage that led to the cancer in the last five years... in most cases, the damage was in part the result of choices made decades before, often in childhood. By the time the cancer becomes apparent, the sunburns and exposure that led to it are long forgotten.
The body is not a simple machine; there is no manual that tells you to eat exactly certain foods and behave in certain ways. Living tissue is far more complicated than a car engine.
However, there are some basic strategies you can use that will reduce your health risks in everyday life and increase your overall wellness. Your body needs air, water, and fuel to operate, and it needs exercise and movement to cycle toxins out and maximize blood-flow to the brain. By remembering what your body needs to perform well, it becomes easy to see which choices help and which hurt your overall efforts. Many of my past and future issues will help you make the specific decisions; read them and research on your own as well.
Changing the oil in your car doesn't magically fix what's wrong, it prevents the problem before it ever develops. Likewise, eating right is something you need to do before you get sick, not because you get sick. And it's the same with exercising, getting enough rest, drinking appropriate amounts of water, and reducing the stress in your life. These are the things you do now so that in five or ten or twenty years you are still able to enjoy an active lifestyle.
It's never too early to get started taking care of yourself; don't wait until it's too late.
Other news
- Define 'weird': Got an urge for something weird and tasty? [www.msnbc.msn.com]
- I bet he's still managed to overlook one Anniversary dinner: Scientists study man’s amazing memory [www.msnbc.msn.com]
- In a nutshell, it's 'woof': Scientists decode dogspeak [www.msnbc.msn.com]
From the editor
It's great to be back! I always enjoy a good vacation, and this was one of the best I've ever had. Now I feel refreshed and recharged and ready to return to my regular routine.
For those of you who sent me messages while I was away, it was great to hear from you! Thanks!
I've had a couple requests to write articles on specific topics in the coming weeks. I will do my best to get to those soon. As always, if you have something you would like me to research and report on, drop me a line and let me know! I'm always open to new areas of study.
Healthy thoughts,
Jeff
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