How to Stay Healthy During the Holidays

During the holidays with additional stress and the business of the season it is easy to neglect your health. Try these tips to maintain good health for the remainder of 2011 and beginning of 2012 with a new health vision.

1. Modify your diet to avoid excessive amounts of fructose, grains, and other pro-inflammatory ingredients like trans fats, and have a plan before going to parties. Eat prior to parties and bring your own health snacks. Do not succumb to he temptations. Eat to win. Learn your individual delayed food allergies.
2. Increase your Vit D  intake during winter months. 2,000 IU to 5,000 IU is a good maintenance dose. Have your Vit D blood levels checked.
3. Animal-based omega-3 fats– Correcting the ratio of omega-3 to healthful omega-6 fats is a strong factor in helping people live longer. This typically means increasing your intake of animal based omega-3 fats, such as fish oil, while decreasing your intake of damaged omega-6 fats (think trans fats) Check out Beyond Organics new AMASI and Green fed cheeses. Not onlg taste good bit good for you. Get most of your antioxidants from foods –Good sources include blueberries, cranberries, blackberries, raspberries, strawberries, cherries, beans, and artichokes. Go organic when possible especially with strawberries.
4. Use coconut oil– Another excellent anti-aging food is coconut oil, known to reduce your risk of heart disease and Alzheimer’s disease, and lower your cholesterol, among other things. Drinking coconut water is an excellent electrolyte drink. Loaded with potassium.
5. Avoid as many chemicals, toxins, and pollutants as possible – This includes tossing out your toxic household cleaners, soaps, personal hygiene products, air fresheners, bug sprays, lawn pesticides, and insecticides, just to name a few, and replacing them with non-toxic alternatives. The EPA (environmental protection agency reported in 2008 that 3.8 billion pounds of chemicals were emitted in the USA water, land and air supply. Thats alot of toxins that you and I have to eliminate on a daily basis. Try using an infrared sauna 2 to 3 times weekly.
6. Use great caution when it comes to prescription drugs – Pharmaceutical drugs kill thousands of people prematurely every year – as an expected side effect of the action of the drug. And, if you adhere to a healthy lifestyle, you most likely will never need any of them in the first place. Use pharmaceutical intervention only as a last resort or in an emergency or acute situation.
7. Learn how to effectively cope with stress– Stress has a direct impact on inflammation, which in turn underlies many of the chronic diseases that kill people prematurely every day, so developing effective coping mechanisms is a major longevity-promoting factor. Try yoga, deep breathing, massage, walking in the country side, etc.
8. Meditation, prayer, physical activity, and exercise are all viable options that can help you maintain emotional and mental equilibrium. I also strongly believe in the benefit of counseling and/or having an accountability partner where you can share your heart and relieve burdens. using these techniques will relieve your burdens of life.

Incorporating these healthy lifestyle guidelines will help set you squarely on the path to optimal health and give you the best shot at living a much longer life. Remember, it’s never too late to take control of your health. And when you do go to the doctor, know that it’s OK to ask questions and opt for less medical intervention while choosing a more natural way of healing your body – you should NEVER think that you’re not supposed to, or can’t, ask questions of the person you’ve entrusted with your body.

Take charge of your health…RETHINK HOW YOU TAKE CARE OF YOUR TEMPLE!

-Dr. Gez Agolli