6 Tips To Help You Avoid The Flu

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Fending off the flu, particularly during the flu season, is not as complicated as most people think. There's the flu shot, but there are safer substitutes that will not put your health at risk because according to the latest studies, the flu vaccine is potentially unsafe.

The flu shot, as with other vaccines, contains mercury, which has been tied to autism in young children. In addition to mercury, a few other unsafe chemicals can be found in flu shots, such as formaldehyde and phenol.

Would you still want to be vaccinated against the flu knowing that you are injecting your body with poison?

Below are several tips on how to fend off the flu safely for those who are not comfortable getting a flu shot:

  1. Make sure your hands are clean at all times. A fast way to catch the flu is by rubbing your eyes or nose after you come in contact with someone who already has the flu virus. You can decrease the risk of getting sick from communicable diseases such as the flu by washing your hands routinely with warm water and soap. Ideally, it is best to clean up before and after preparing food, before eating, after going to the bathroom, or whenever you feel like your hands are filthy.
  2. Keep your house clean. Routinely clean and disinfect surfaces and objects inside your home that you or your children are often in contact with.
  3. Begin living healthy. Prevention is always better than the cure. Boost your natural defense versus the flu by enhancing your immune system. By making simple adjustments to your everyday life, you can start enhancing your immune system. Try switching from coffee to tea, staying away from sugar, and do not forget to relax often.
  4. Rest. Give yourself a breather and rest when you feel like you are about to get the flu. This may be just for a few hours or a couple of days, which is better than getting the flu and having to miss work for much longer.
  5. Refrain from unnecessary contact with other people. Don't go to places that are too congested, such as shopping malls and airports, except when really needed. This is crucial for younger kids, who can quickly catch the flu, or if you have concerns with your immune system.
  6. Drink lots of water. Pure water would be best. Stay away from distilled water because it has been exhausted of nutrients. A quart of water per 50 pounds of body weight is recommended. Stay away from sodas, coffee, and energy drinks as well.

Five Enjoyable Activities to Help You Lose Weight

Sunday, December 21, 2008

For some, going to the gym to exercise has become an exhausting effort. It is boring and wearying, specifically if you are flying solo. Diet pills and supplements will not suffice either if you're looking to trim weight. You are left with no option but to break a bucket of sweat.

Heading to the gym is not the only way to workout, though. There are tons of activities that are not only fun, but would also help you drop excess weight. You just need some creativity to find the best one for you. Below are some examples to give you a better idea.

Go hiking. Go to the nearest hiking trail with several of your friends. There's a couple of websites that will help you find a trail that would fit you best. While you're at it, take advantage of the clean air and surroundings and camp for the night.

Join a biking club. Aside from improving your heart health, biking can help you develop your strength and coordination. Roughly anyone can learn how to work a bike. If you need assistance, local cycling clubs are always considerate of fresh recruits. Partake in events such as club rides if you feel that you're ready.

Learn how to dance. Dancing will not only help you burn calories, it will also help you refine your social skills. Depending on what variety of dance you are doing, dancing has many health benefits. Ballroom dancing, for example, helps you build stamina and alleviate stress. Dance lectures will cost you, but it sure is better than running on a treadmill.

Pick up a physical sport. Winning, or being skilled at it, is not really the point. What's more important is to get up, get out and get those muscles to work!

Get a dog. Taking your dog for an early walk is a good way to start the day. A medium or big-sized dog would be your best pick.

Helpful Marathon Preparation Tips

Monday, December 1, 2008

It is every runner's dream to run and finish a marathon. Even just for fun, joining a marathon is an undertaking everyone should have a go at least once. Not only will a marathon appraise your grit and health, it also measures your toughness and mental soundness too.

The marathon has a strikingly rich past beginning with its namesake, a Greek soldier named Pheidippides. After the Battle of Marathon, Pheidippides was said to have run a total of 26.2 miles from the town of Marathon to Athens to transport information of the winner. He then collapsed and died after stating the decimation of the Persians.

Despite the fact the marathon is a race, crossing the finish line first is not the foremost purpose of a number of the participants. Recreational participants in particular would be satisfied and ecstatic with just being able to pass over the finish line. Whatever your motivations are for running, it is strongly recommended that you go through the essential training to avert injuries.

The following are just some tips to help you launch your marathon training. Please note that you should consult with your doctor beforehand for your own safety.

  • Do an ample study before you get going with your training. If you know someone who has experienced in a marathon before, ask them for tips and advice. As indicated above, asking your physician should be your first priority.
  • Quality gear is a must. A definite course to draw an injury is to train using decrepit shoes. When shopping for new shoes, ask capable sales agents and do a couple of test-runs.
  • Clothe yourself correctly according to weather and climate. Use sunscreen before you train to protect yourself from too much sun.
  • Rest if you feel like your body needs it. You might not make it to the contest if you train too hard.
  • Maintain a training log to help you track your development. Indicate your injuries and best times for later reference. Organize your next moves in advanced and be sure to follow them.

Stay Slim and Healthy on a Frugal Budget

Monday, November 10, 2008

One does not need an overpriced gym membership to be trim or stay fit. Chances to exercise can be found in many places. A person just have to be resourceful in your approach. With today's economy, I'm positive that you'll agree to anything that will aid you pinch those hard-earned dollars.

Fiscal problems are an ordinary alibi for people who don't want to straighten out their weight and wellness. The truth is they are just too slothful to work out a resolution. They are just finding excuses to vindicate their need of effort to get sound. If you certainly want to do something, you will certainly come up with a way to achieve it no matter what, and working out is no exception.

The following are some tips to help you to not only get healthy, but save some money in the process as well. Please be sure to check with your doctor first before going through any physical exercise. Having a decent pair of running shoes would not hurt either too.

  • Walk your way to school. Instead of hailing a taxicab or driving, put on your running shoes and put those leg muscles to work. This will help you save money on petrol and burn calories as well! Park a number of blocks away from your office and walk the rest of the way if it's too a good distance to walk from your place.
  • Get out the elevator several floors below of your office and take advantage of the stairs. Better yet, traverse the stairs all the way!
  • Recreation squares and jogging ruts are your friends. This is a good way to bump into people with similar interests as you, and it is often free! Pay attention and you may secure a few tips that they may be ready to part with. All that is required is a pair of good running shoes and you got yourself complimentary use of Mother Nature's treadmill.
  • Do simple stretches during work. Muscles, especially leg muscles, are likely to cramp during long hours of sitting. A good way to keep pace with your fitness is by getting a short break and doing primary leg, arm, neck, and back stretches.
  • Instead of employing help, do your own pad cleaning. All that mopping, scouring, and vacuuming will put your entire body to work. You are sure to sweat five minutes into it.
  • Look for a sport that you are fond of and play it like a pro. Even though you're not good at it, your objective here is not to win. You want to work a sweat and rid of those repugnant undesirable fats. Also, it would be finer if you can have your chums join you.
  • Work out while having a night-out! In place of catching a movie or wasting the night drinking, go to clubs or attend concerts and dance your heart out. This is yet another example of mixing exercise with fun!

A Guide To A Friendlier Workplace

Sunday, November 2, 2008

Our job can be considered as our second home. We exert more than forty of our waking hours in a week engrossed in our work, some even more. That's the rationale why it is important for our personal, emotional, and professional expansion to find pals in the office. Despite the fact that it is not of utmost necessity, making mates in the office has its perks.

Do you have some work that needs rushing? Your "work friends" are guaranteed to be there to help you out. Be prepared to take in frank advice from them too, whether it's personal or professional affairs. They can also be a shoulder to cry on when you have letdowns and concerns regarding your supervisor or co-worker. Most significant of all, having cohorts at work allots you another purpose to wake up in the morning and go to work.

The co-workers near to you will unquestionably be your first mates. Also, you may find it significantly easy to befriend those belonging to the same department as you since you can talk about your work and exchange ideas. But do not confine yourself to only a few cohorts. Talk with as many people as workable. Remember that there is no such thing as too many friends.

To help you to start making friends at the office, here are some suggestions and advice. The following is not for regular employees. Instead, it is created based on new hires.

  1. Place your most fitting foot forward. Smile and be really interested when you are presented to a co-worker. Despite the fact that this might be a perplexing predicament to a number of us, give it your best to make the best of it and make sure to be refreshing at all times.
  2. Do not forget people's names. Have you ever tried having a communication without even recalling the other person's name? It's worrisome! Full names are troublesome to recall, I know, that is why I do propose to give your nickname when presented, and get your co-workers' too.
  3. Never squander lunch hours! Lunch hours are the best times to get to know your co-worker. Suggest to hitch on lunch-outs if the chance presents itself. Also, don't ever say no to an invitation because this is an admirable gesture that they want to know you more. If you turn down the invitation, they may think you wouldn't want to be friends, or worse, they may take it as a discourtesy.
  4. Brighten your workplace with conversation pieces. Show off pictures, gadgets, or trophies at your workplace to aid you affect a discussion. Be sure your employer tolerrates it, though. This is a good opportunity to let them get to know you a tad better personally.
  5. Be open. Not everyone will be fond of you. Spare yourself some difficulty and accept that now. You will sure touch shoulders with one or two that will push your buttons as well. Keep in mind your etiquette and never show rudeness. Rather, grasp that each person is an individual, with differing attitude the same as you.
  6. Do not push it! Friendship grows over time. Enforcing yourself to co-workers might turn them off. Don't be overly needy or clingy and just allow things occur naturally.

Do I Eat More When I Am Mentally Overworked?

Sunday, October 26, 2008

Does creative thinking, analysis, and mental exertion drive you to gain in weight more?

Thinking in excess may increase one’s hunger. Many people know this to be true because a busy day of mental work can be as physically wearying as actual physical work. According to research, mental work "destabilizes" insulin and glucose levels, hence increasing one’s hunger and shall ultimately spur you to eat more. There are a number of factors that point to a boost in appetite, and a lot of those has something to do with the mind of an individual.

A major mental factor is one that is induced by mental activities - stress. Eating more is likely induced by stress. In the past, even I tend to eat a lot more when I'm stressed out. As soon as you let your guard down, this response of your body to your state of mind will be natural.

Rats are no different from people. A particular hormone named glucocorticoid steroid hormone, or cortisol in humans, is discharged by chronically stressed rats according to researchers. This spurs the rats to actively partake in pleasure-seeking acts. These acts would eventually help them acquire abdominal obesity due to the amount of high-energy foods that they devoured.

Someone will promote abdominal obesity by too much or unessential eating. Diabetes, stroke, and increased risk of heart attack are just some illnesses and disease linked to abdominal obesity. So it is better to halt stress in its tracks than appease it with an oily pizza and large soda!

According to British researchers, boredom and loneliness shares the blame. About fifty percent of adults eat too much because of boredom and loneliness. Comfort foods, like junk foods and ice cream is to blame here. These foods are usually consumed in large bulks passing along large bulks of fat too!

Now that you are informed, it is a good time to be watchful of your hunger after a hard day at work. You should eat, by all means, if you are legitimately feeling hungry. Commit to mind that what your body needs is proper nutriment, so eat healthy and eat right! Eating a well planned healthy diet and exercise is a certain way to remove the woes of your weight off your mind.

Useful Tips to Help You Wake Up Earlier

Monday, October 13, 2008

Who would not want to wake up early and watch the sun rise? A number of people, though, doesn't give this enough priority. Little do they know that aside from the ability to enjoy the smoke-free morning air, there is a number of benefits that early wakers enjoy.

Waking earlier grants you ample time to gear up yourself before heading for work or school. This precious time can be spent by working out and going to the gym, which would be best done during mornings. One can also begin your commute earlier than usual, ahead of everyone, to make you pass the morning surge of traffic. A number of people also find early morning to be their most active part of the day because of less distraction and it helps them concentrate more.

That is only a brief summary of what you can get if you get up earlier. The following several tips below are made to aid you wake up earlier.

Go to bed earlier than usual. There are some who depreciate the value of sleeping early. Our body needs rest, and the later we sleep chances are we wake up late as well. For an average adult, 7 to 8 hours is the best amount of sleep, but this changes for one person to another. Feel your body's need and adjust your sleeping hours as needed.

Purchase the most suitable alarm clock for you. A suitable alarm clock is one that will force you straight up the moment it goes off. Try experimenting with different types of alarms, starting from the loudest and work your way down. As an additional tip, place the alarm clock somewhere you cannot reach from where your bed is. This is so you cannot turn it off and go back to sleep again.

Stand up from your bed fast. Get up and walk out of your room the moment you feel your eyes open. Chances are you will be going to bed again if you stay long inside your bedroom. You have to be careful on your way out, though. You might hit the door.

Remove stress before going to bed. Not only will this help you sleep, it will also give you a reason to get up every morning. Recap your day before you sleep and point out potential problems and plan the following day to solve these worries. Hopefully this will help open and place your mind at rest and also motivate you to begin your day much earlier.

Plan a good sleep pattern. Right knowing what sleeping habits works for you, follow it and never quit. Self-discipline and determination is the main key here. If you need it bad enough, you can and you will wake up earlier.