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09/Aug/2021

Both Honey and Sugar consist of approximately similar amounts of glucose and fructose. Glucose and fructose are absorbed directly into the bloodstream. Sucrose is different from these 2 in that it must be broken down first before being absorbed into the blood stream. Glucose is used for energy or stored as glycogen. Fructose is converted to glucose or stored


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15/May/2021


Time being a precious commodity for all of us, regaining control of our health has never been more important. Sometimes we are so busy with our everyday lives that we forget to look after ourselves especially when it comes to managing our health. Much of the work we can do starts at home.



We are what we eat. 

It is not about a single meal; it is about a balanced food choice over time that will make a difference. The food we eat can give our body the nutrients it need, make us feel good and protect our long-term health and well-being. The foods we choose are important, but so is the amount we eat. The number of kilo-joules (calories) we eat versus how many we burn by being physically active is one of the keys to keeping the body weight in check. Lots of “healthy foods” can have high levels of hidden salt and sugar we may need to watch out for. Aim for a balanced diet that includes all the main food groups, which has both physical and psychological benefits. When making healthy food choices, you are doing something positive for yourself and this can raise your self-esteem and improves mental health.



Balance is key when it comes to food and health. Eating well and staying healthy is a balancing act that takes effort and practice. Balance your weight by matching the food you eat with the physical activity you do. Energy we take in from what we eat and drink is measured in kilo-joules (KJ) and the number of kilo-joules needed is different for everyone. Balance the food you eat by eating mostly healthy foods your body needs. Make an effort to choose healthier foods more often to get the balance right.

Variety is the spice of life, and it’s certainly an important goal when it comes to eating well. Enjoy foods from healthy food groups every day to give your body the nutrients it needs. It is also good to enjoy a variety of different foods from within the food groups themselves to keep meals interesting and to give you a broad range of nutritional benefits. For most people, a healthy diet is high in vegetables, fruit, whole grains, and lean protein. Most people should also have some healthy fats, such as olive oil. Ask your HealthySpan consultant on what diet is right for you.

Think about drinks as drinks count: Choose those which can add nutrients (such as calcium from milk) and avoid or reduce those that just add kilo-joules we don’t need (such as sugar-sweetened drinks). Less sugar, more water.

Water is best, and drinking water is a healthy habit for the whole family.  Avoid alcohol as no amount of alcohol is good for your health. Taking charge of your health is something you can do at any age, and can be as easy as starting your day off with a glass of water. Water first thing in the morning will also help re-hydrate you and will flush out toxins, leaving you feeling refreshed and energized to tackle the day ahead.

Stress – High levels of stress can lead to a number of serious health problems, so if you have a lot of stress in life, we strongly recommend reducing it. Managing your stress can be a gradual process. Introducing regular exercise to your lifestyle is a good first step, and trying to make more time for yourself can help, too. Incorporating a little exercise into your daily routine can reap countless benefits, even if it’s something as simple as walking.

Get enough rest.

Adequate sleep is a must for good health and helps in reducing stress and maintaining your overall health. Chronic sleep deprivation raises the odds for heart disease, diabetes, stroke, obesity, and many other sicknesses. Driving while sleepy is just as bad as driving drunk. If you don’t usually wake up feeling refreshed, try slipping into bed 15 minutes earlier every week until you do. Seven to eight hours a night is the average amount an adult needs to reboot both mind and body.

Mental health is just as important as physical health, so make sure to take time for yourself. Make time for a 20-minute bath before bed, which can help you feel more relaxed and better equipped to deal with the stresses of day-to-day life.

It is always beneficial for individuals to communicate, with friends, family members rather than distancing and getting slaved to hand held devices. Socializing is very important to manage and reduce stress. Stay in touch with family and friends. Be involved in your community. Maintain a positive attitude and do things that make you happy. Keep your curiosity alive. Lifelong learning is beneficial to your health.

Don’t do it alone. Whatever your health goals are, it will be far easier to reach them if someone has your back. That might mean finding an exercise buddy who meets you at the gym, asking a friend to go with you, or simply confiding in someone you trust about your current struggles so they can cheer you on along the way.



Exercise

Move more; sit less, that’s the physical activity guidelines in a nutshell

Adding moderate exercise into your daily life is not only good for mind and body, it can also be a great way to socialise and see friends. Choose an exercise that you enjoy and it is always beneficial to exercise with a friend or listen to music. Even moderate exercise has many benefits including helping you sleep better, boosting your energy and improving your mental, as well as physical, well-being. If you’re trying to reach a healthy weight, exercise will help. Note that any movement is better than nothing

The best approach is to start slowly and build up. Walking, swimming, dancing and yoga are all good ways to get moving and improve strength, stamina and flexibility. Few surveys have revealed that walking is the most popular form of exercise undertaken a few times a week .You’re actually getting, probably, 95% or more of the benefits when you’re walking as compared to jogging.

Be active through moderate exercise at least 30 minutes a day, five days a week. For instance, take a brisk walk. Once you reach that goal, add some strength exercises a few days each week. These build muscles. Also add some stretching exercises, these help you stay limber.

Few Keys to Good Health

Brush your teeth at least twice a day with soft or medium bristled toothbrush (once u wake up and before going to bed)

Stay up to date on vaccines. Grownups need shots, too. You should get a flu shot every year. Immunisation protects by helping to control serious infectious diseases.

Wash your hands. It’s one of the easiest and most effective ways to avoid catching whatever contagious bugs are going around. The key is to be thorough: After you lather up with soap, scrub your palms, the backs of your hands, between your fingers, and under your nails for at least 20 seconds

Give your skin access to healthy dose of the sun’s rays and you are likely to experience some tangible benefits immediately like increased Vitamin D, improved mood, higher quality sleep, stronger bones, lower blood pressure

Limit alcohol drinking. It’s true that moderate amounts of alcohol have been tied to some health benefits, like a lower risk of heart disease, but there are also serious downsides to drinking, such as a higher risk of cancer and liver disease. So you shouldn’t start drinking for the sake of good health.

Steer clear of smoke. Smoking doesn’t just hurt your lungs. It harms almost every organ in your body, making you a more likely target for cancer, heart disease, and other serious illnesses. Second-hand smoke is dangerous, too, and there’s no amount that’s “safe.” If you live with a smoker, support them in quitting or at least ask them to take it outside



Take baby steps.

It’s tempting to overhaul entire lifestyle at once. But tackling too many health goals at once often backfires because change can be hard. To better your odds of getting and staying healthier, make a series of small changes and work your way up to a bigger end game. For instance, if you’d like to eat a more nutritious diet, focus on breakfast. Once you get used to that, think about how to improve your lunch menu.

Healthy habits can help you have a long, healthy and happier life.


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22/Apr/2021

Carbohydrates and their role in optimal health have dominated discussions of the human diet for almost the 2nd half of the 20th century and the entire 21st century so far. Mainstream diet fads and recommendations have evolved over this period. Scientists, food technologists, researchers continue to discover new information about how human


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22/Apr/2021

Vitamin C is one of the most important micronutrient needed for our body to boost the immune system. Recommended intake of vitamin C is 50mg to 90mg per day. Vitamin C is a water soluble vitamin. We need to make sure that our diets are packed with vitamin C. Many fruits and vegetables like Kiwi fruit, Green Peppers, Red Peppers and Citrus fruits contain adequate amounts of vitamin C.


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27/Mar/2021

The debate on which is healthier between ghee and butter has been raging for ages. Ghee is often deemed as a hurdle in our weight loss journeys. It is ousted as fattening and unhealthy. On the contrary it is, in fact very healthy. Ghee can be used as a substitute for butter, and ghee might be a more healthful alternative for using in cooking. Cholesterol levels has no impact in occurrence of heart disease and this forces us to remove it from the culprit list while the new entries are refined carbohydrates (flour, sugar etc.) and they are the killers.


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27/Jan/2021

Whenever you ask people “Do you want strong and healthy hair?”, more often than not the answer is “yes”. How many of us know the right ways improve the quality of hair? When someone observes even a slight hair fall, first thought would be to probably visit a salon and use different varieties of shampoos and oils. Not many people are aware that the root cause for the hair fall would be lack of essential nutrition in our diet.


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22/Jan/2021

The GI of a food or meal is influenced by a number of factors, which include the chemical and physical structure of the carbohydrate-food, how refined the carbohydrate is, how the carbohydrate is cooked and also the presence of other substances which reduce either the potency of the body’s digestive enzymes, or the speed of digestion.


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16/Jan/2021

The nuts such as walnuts, almonds, macadamia nuts, hazelnuts and pecans are rich in omega 3 fatty acids, fiber and Vitamin E. Omega-3s are healthy fatty acids that seem to help the heart by, among other things, preventing irregular heart rhythms that can lead to heart attacks. Fiber helps lower cholesterol. It also makes us feel full, so we eat less. In addition, fiber is found to play a role in preventing type 2 diabetes.


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07/Dec/2020


We first make our habits, and then our habits make us – John Dryden.


Most of us would have heard this quote and this is applicable to our health as well. We first make our lifestyle habits and our lifestyle habits make our health.

What are the lifestyle habits?

Our lifestyle habits comprise of numerous things, such as

  • The food we eat
  • Our sleep duration and quality
  • Our temptation or even addiction to caffeine, sweets, smoking and alcohol
  • How often we laugh
  • How often we exercise
  • Our vacation time
  • Our working routines and workplace relationships
  • Our family relationships
Broadly, we can classify them into four categories
  1. Diet & Nutrition
  2. Exercise
  3. Sleep/Rest and
  4. Positive Mental Health.

Most of the time, these 4 are interrelated. One affects the other. Say if one does not have a proper sleep, it is unlikely that he/she will do exercise or take the right nutrition or be with a positive attitude the next day. Similarly, when one has a stressful time at office, it is unlikely that he/she will be able to sleep well or focus on a nutritious diet or exercise. Similarly, if we fix one in a positive way, it will also impact the other areas in a positive way. Say if one had a stressful day at office, but still he/she went for a quick jog for 30 minutes, the body automatically releases endorphins that interact with the receptors in brain and reduce your perception of stress. So, the good news is that, just by fixing one of these 4 areas, it is easy to fix all the 4 areas of healthy lifestyle habits.

Let’s look at these 4 pillars of health in a bit more detail.


Get the Basics of Exercise

Sleep / Rest

Sleep is very important as your body repairs itself during sleep. A good quality sleep strengthens the immune system, reduces the risk of diseases, lowers blood pressure, keeps heart healthy, improves memory, controls weight, curbs inflammation, spurs creativity, sharpens  attention, makes you more energetic and  happier, reduces anxiety and depression, keeps the skin healthier and attractive. The amount of sleep required may vary from person to person according to their lifestyle. In general, sleeping early and maintaining a good 6 to 8 of sleep hours is recommended.


Positive Mental Attitude

Having a positive mental attitude is very important to our overall well-being. When our attitude is not positive, our body undergoes a stressful situation. A well-balanced diet, exercise and good sleep are important to gain a positive mental attitude. You can also learn to handle stress by planning and organizing activities well in advance, learning to let go of things that cause unhappiness and cannot be changed, meditating for a few minutes, focusing on the future instead of the past, deferring your response to complex situation by a few seconds or a few minutes and so on.



Diet and Nutrition

Diet and nutrition are two factors that we need to know about, and it is important to recognize the difference between the two. The best way to define diet is the food that a person habitually eats, and nutrition is food that our bodies need to consume daily to function optimally. Food sustains life and living beings. Complexion, clarity, good voice, longevity, genius, happiness, satisfaction, nutrition, strength and intellect are all conditioned by food. A few things that we need to take care in our diet are eating fresh food, eating a balanced diet, eating at the right time, supplementing our diet and the way we eat.



Exercise

The benefits of a modest exercise program include:

  • Weight Loss
  • Lower blood pressure
  • Stronger bones and decreased risk of osteoporosis
  • Lower cholesterol levels
  • Elevated levels of HDL
  • Decreased levels of LDL
  • Decreased levels of Triglycerides
  • Increased strength and co-ordination, which leads to decreased risk of falls
  • Improved sensitivity to Insulin
  • Enhanced immune system
  • Overall increased sense of well-being

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22/Nov/2020

Iron is an important component of hemoglobin, a protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen and carbon dioxide from your lungs to transport it throughout your body. Hemoglobin represents about two-thirds of the body’s iron. If there is not enough iron, our body can't make enough healthy oxygen-carrying red blood cells commonly known as RBC’s. A lack of red blood cells is called iron deficiency anemia.


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    Lifestyle disorders are in epidemic proportions now. It is time, we recognize this monster we are up against as a society and take some manifest and decisive actions. This monster affects us all - prematurely in many cases, shortening healthy life span & productivity. Many of us are, living long –long life attributable to significant strides made in modern medicine. However, for many, the years in the long life are devoid of optimal health. At HealthySpan Wellness, we are resolute in our determination to confront this menace through our holistic wellness programs such as healthy weight loss program, that provide assistance in fighting such lifestyle disorders.

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