Food for Thought

Eating healthy is something everyone in the world deals with. The poor drought stricken people in Africa scrounge to find anything edible and the wealthy West try to wade through all the abundant choices to find something healthy to eat.

Did you know that Canada has more donut shops per capita than the US?

Did you know that Canadians eat more Kraft dinner per capita than any other country in the world?

We have an ashamedly great amount of food choices in this country. Lets make the right healthy choices. Avoid the over processed junk food.

For the Love of Chocolate

At this festive time of year chocolate is often the gift of choice.

Did you know that according to medical research eating chocolate 3 times per month helps people to live longer? This is in contrast to people who over eat chocolate or don't eat chocolate at all.

Chocolate is good for you if eaten in moderation. Enjoy.

Tips For Healthy Living

Here are some basic tips for healthy living.  With our busy lifestyles we all can lose focus on what really matters the most. Our good health is something that can suffer yet is of utmost importance.

• Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day. Try to keep your mind free of worries during this time. If you like you can meditate on pleasant things.
• Do moderate exercise at least 3 times a week. Walking, running stairs, jogging, cycling and swimming are just a few examples. People who do moderate exercise lower their risk of cardiovascular disease compared to inactive people.
• Check your posture. Don't slouch. good posture allows your internal organs to function better and helps prevent neck and back pain.
• Eat out less often. Learn to prepare and eat a variety of different healthy foods. Take a cooking class to help you learn how to cook.
• For snacking keep a see-through container of cut-up vegetables in the refrigerator.
• Don't snack a night. If you need to eat something choose fresh vegetables or fruits.
• Strategies to help reduce stress include: aerobic exercise, plenty of sleep, deep breathing and meditating.
• Choose nuts as a snack. Use nuts to replace meat or poultry in your menu, not in addition to these items.
• Try eating half the food on your plate while eating out and bring the other half home for later consumption.
• When you work out, don't drink caffeinated beverages, as they can dehydrate you. Be aware that some Energy drinks are loaded with caffeine. 

These tips for healthy living are in random order but are geared toward guiding us in taking better care of ourselves. I'll be adding more of these tips for healthy living in future posts.

Walking is good for you

Did you know that by walking just an extra 20 minutes a day you can burn off 7 pounds of fat in one year. Now this is "extra" walking over and above what you are already doing.

Walking is low impact to your body which most of us can handle. Besides the weight loss you'll be able to de-stress and enjoy some fresh air.

Go ahead, take a walk!