Ways to Ensure You Are Not Neglecting Your Health

“From now onwards, I will follow a healthy routine and cut off all the junk that I have been eating. I am going to get the membership in the gym and exercise 5 days a week because I want to stay healthy.” Do these lines sound familiar? We all have been there and said the same words. We get too caught up in our routines that we barely find time to evaluate our food choices or sleep patterns. Most of our meals are grab-and-go while running to our work or heading out for a meeting. Recalling the food we eat while at work is either a cheeseburger from our favorite joint or a sandwich that we hurriedly chew away because we are running out of time.

Many preventive medicine experts think that the best way to improve a nation’s health is simple, i.e., healthy habits. However, if we analyze only one day of our life and start counting how many healthy habits we practiced, we won’t find many. Working round-the-clock and staying glued to our seats munching on snacks is all good to curb the cravings, but it comes with a price. Eating unhealthy food or not looking after our water intake often ends up at hospital visits.

Staying healthy is essential, but it requires consistent efforts. The healthcare professionals that assist us in treating our ailments always recommend not to neglect our health. Thankfully, today, there are more specialists to guide us to a healthy life due to the rise of online education. Like a nurse, for example. Nurses are the primary healthcare providers in any healthcare setup. From recording a patient’s history to designing their diet charts, they play a vital role in our health and recovery. Nurses can easily start their careers with a bachelor’s degree, and due to today’s ease of access to education remotely, online DNP programs offer them a higher degree of education while they perform their duties. Many nurses with a DNP move to leadership roles within their field.

That said, read the following tips to ensure that you’re not neglecting your health.

• Getting Proper Sleep

Getting a night of good sleep is one of the essentials to stay healthy. Our body needs rest from the busy and tiring routine and a break from our screens that we use all day. Our cortisol levels peak around 7 to 8 am, allowing us to be more productive and function well. Getting a proper sleep for seven to eight hours is necessary but be watchful about your eight-hour clock. If you are early to bed and early to rise, you will find yourself active and cheerful every day, but sleeping and waking up late makes you less productive, and you experience fatigue throughout the day.

• Chewing Slowly

Food not chewed properly takes longer to digest, leading to digestive disturbances like heartburn or bloating.  Chewing our food too quickly and in big bites is one of the reasons for weight gain. When we eat food, our body releases a fullness hormone, letting us know that we have eaten our required food portion and should stop eating. Chewing food faster leads to extra food consumption than our requirements; hence it results in weight gain. So, try taking some time to sit and eat in a relaxed environment for healthy food digestion.

• Drinking Enough Water

Pause whatever you are doing and think for a while; how much water do you drink during the day? Do you consume more water than beverages, or is it the other way round? Water is a crucial element to remove toxins from our body and prevent excessive components like creatinine. Not drinking enough water burdens the kidneys to eliminate toxins by utilizing the water absorbed by the body. Our food has healthy and unhealthy components depending on what we eat, and we need to wash away the toxins from our bodies to stay healthy.

• Staying Active

Another major factor contributing to our health is how active we are. Our lifestyle has a significant impact on our health, and it plays a vital role in staying healthy. No matter how hectic your job is, ensure that you take a small break to walk around the office and get your legs moving. Our joints and bones need movement, and an active lifestyle is a key to keeping many ailments away. Exercising or going for a morning walk improves our health by regulating our blood flow and helping us maintain our healthy body weight. If you cannot find time during your workdays for any physical activity, make time on your day off but keep your body moving.

Conclusion

Dealing with all the responsibilities of life and managing everything keeps us on our toes. Our health becomes a second priority while work stays the first. A study says that eating a balanced diet has 47% less chance of fatal diseases than people relying on unhealthy food. Additionally, our physical health is indeed essential but looking after our mental health is also necessary. You might feel tired if you are not getting proper rest but if you notice extreme mood swings or anger, check your emotional well-being.