Feed Your Body What It Needs To Excel

October 12th, 2011

If your body isn’t getting the foods and nutrients it needs to function properly, then don’t expect your brain to respond appropriately when it’s called upon, either. Some people spend more money and time feeding the right diet to their pets or selecting proper additives for their cars than they do for themselves.

Your brain feeds on the foods you feed your body and if you’re constantly eating an unhealthy diet then not only does your body slow down so does your brain. Often this comes on so slowly it’s not noticed until you’re elderly and then the blame falls on aging.

As the brain ages, the memory fades and it loses the ability to help itself. It becomes an easy prey for oxidation and inflammation, which can kill the brain cells. To lead a healthy and productive life, it’s imperative to tune your body and your mind so that both are functioning efficiently.

Of course, you need to exercise, keep your blood pressure in check and get proper rest, at least seven hours of sleep at night. And concentrate on a diet that’s rich in mind and body enhancing nutrients. Supplements can be taken but it’s best to rely on natural foods to obtain the best longer lasting results.

We can learn a lesson from plants. They produce their own antioxidants to protect themselves from diseases, pollution and other harmful elements in the environment. So, we should ingest foods that are rich in antioxidants such as fruits and berries including grapes, cherries, apples, plums and oranges. Blueberries and cranberries have proven to be especially high in antioxidants that aid in memory retention.

Vegetables high in antioxidants include the green and leafy types such as spinach, broccoli, kake, and brussel sprouts. Beets, red bell peppers, onions and garlic are also rich in the desired nutrients. Chard, turnip and collard greens are also high in antioxidants but not as much as their cousins.

Omega 3 fatty acids must not be forgotten and they may be found in salmon, tuna, herring, mackerel and sardines. Seafood also is packed with B vitamins as well as dairy products, eggs, spinach, carrots and various nuts and seeds.

Some spices are also excellent in providing a better memory and health body by improving your motor skills and aiding your brain to communicate and regenerate. Cur cumin, found in ginger and curry, has been said to prevent memory loss. Rosemary, both fresh and dried, stimulates and enhances the memory while it also calms your nerves and promotes a healthy circulatory system.

Good news for coffee lovers. Recent studies have revealed that caffeinated coffee in moderation helps to prevent memory loss and stimulate brainwave activity. The study showed it to be more effective in helping women than men. Maintaining a healthy body and mind with a balanced diet will not only help you to excel today but enable you to carry on with an enviable existence throughout life.

Defy the Aging Process with a Positive Mental Attitude

August 30th, 2011

Perhaps the most important thing you can do for yourself to increase longevity and live a happier, healthier life is to learn how to develop and keep a positive metal attitude.

The process of developing an attitude that will help you later in life should be nurtured during the younger years. How you learn skills when you’re young to help cope with adversities and strategies through life will become all important when you reach a time that requires those skills.

We now know how important it is to our mental health to figure out a mission for our lives. Then, as you go through the stages and hurdles of life, you can reassess that mission and reconfigure it for where you currently are on life’s path.

Living a full rich life should be a goal that you not only strive for, but work toward by doing everything possible to make sure you’re healthy, both in body and mind to withstand the ravages of time.

The most important Tools to keep a Positive Attitude

Scientific research indicates that “retirement” as our ancestors viewed it really isn’t a good thing for us to keep a positive mental attitude about life. Below are some helpful tools for you to live by if living a full, rich life is of concern to you.

Keep Busy – A rocking chair isn’t the way to achieve “Fountain of Youth” effects during the aging process. We now know that keeping active, both in body and mind is the best way to live a long and productive life.

Write Your Own Road Map
- Baby boomers entering their 60s never expected to age, so they’re now looking for ways to keep their youth- but most are trying to retain their youth with cosmetic surgery, pills or surrounding themselves with youthful “things” such as a bright red sports car.

Writing your own road map for the rest of your life is empowering and can also help to build your mental aptitude just as you would build your muscles through exercise.

Cultivate Healthy Relationships
- The relationships you cultivate with family and friends can make the difference in how you view the rest of your life. Taking trips and learning new things are all better done with someone you care about than alone.

Take the necessary steps to develop a positive mental attitude that will help you through the aging process gently and optimistically.

Facts You Should Know About Honey, Oatmeal and Avocado Facial Masks

August 18th, 2011

 

What advantages do a honey facial mask, avocado facial mask, and oatmeal facial mask have in common? They all contain nutrients and they can be used to make the skin become softer as well as add moisture.

Let’s take a look at the benefits offered by each of the main ingredients. Avocados are a fruit that contains antioxidants. Antioxidants are chemicals, and when used on the skin, they help to protect it from things that would damage it – things like the sun’s rays, harmful pollution and environmental irritations. As a natural anti-aging skin helper, avocados are on the front line to keep your skin looking good.

Did you know that for years, honey was used in medical treatments? Not only was it used years ago, but it’s still being examined today for it’s antibiotic appeal. From wounds to burns, honey was used to bring healing.

Honey also has some very surprising health benefits for your skin. If you have dry skin, honey can be used as a mask to lock in the moisture and soften your skin. Like the avocado, it also has antioxidant chemicals and tightens the skin.

Used as a mask, it’s light and easy to remove. Because it’s all natural, it’s good even for use on people who have sensitive skin. What you might not know is that honey is one of nature’s own antiseptics. Used on the skin, antiseptics remove and prevent bacteria from causing harm or damage by acting as a shield.

Before you decide that you want to use all three – a honey facial mask, avocado facial mask, and oatmeal facial mask, lets take a look at the final one and see what’s uncovered about the benefits of using oatmeal on the skin.

Oatmeal cleanses the skin through exfoliation and also moisturizes. It has a natural cleansing ability that also soothes skin irritants. You can make these masks at home or you can get them conveniently prepared for you where they come mixed with other natural ingredients that offer health boosts for the skin.

Some people will mix two or even all three of the ingredients (honey, avocado and oatmeal) together. For anyone who has to deal with acne outbreaks, using a mixture of honey and oatmeal together creates a mask that cleanses the skin and helps to heal the acne.

If you decide to combine a honey facial mask, avocado facial mask and oatmeal facial mask, but you currently have an acne outbreak, then you need to be careful not to add or get products that have lemon included as one of the ingredients. The acidity in the lemon could irritate your skin and might cause redness.

Best Organic Beauty Products For Your Body

August 14th, 2011

Overall good health involves a head to toe selection of the best organic beauty products for your body. It’s not enough to simply use organic shampoos or soaps only to turn around and use products filled with chemicals that can harm your skin or worse – cause adverse health problems.

Did you know that many of the products you buy in the beauty department are created with chemicals that contain materials that are linked to cancers? Unlike food items, beauty products have no stamp of approval or disapproval from the FDA.

That means there are no tests done to show the consumer that the items are safe as well as effective. Any company with enough money and a big advertising campaign can sell to consumers and promote products that aren’t truly safe.

Buying that $10 product made for the masses might seem like a good bargain, but what are you really getting? What’s in the shampoo that’s being absorbed into your skin? What kind of toxic chemicals are you putting on your face? What about the deodorants you use? The perfumes you apply to your skin?

The list could go on and on and even include products you use to care for your clothes. Always remember that whatever you put on (bath products, cosmetics, shampoo, soap) your body does absorb. So whatever materials are in that product could end up inside your body.

You might even have read reports where some companies assure potential buyers that their products weren’t tested on animals. But you have to ask yourself, why was the practice of testing on animals started to begin with? To see if they would be toxic to humans.

Beauty product companies are in the business to make money and sadly, profit sings a better song to some than public safety. That’s why the best organic beauty products for your body are the ones made from purely organic materials. You might pay a little more for organic, but isn’t your health and the health of your loved ones worth a few extra dollars? Of course it is.

Not only does switching to organic-based products help keep your skin and body toxin free, but it also can give your body some extra boosts. Did you know that many of the natural products contain vitamins and nutrients that help your body’s overall health?

Where do you think the practice of using beauty products originated from? Where did the original beauty products come from? From plant materials. From nature. Your long ago ancestors knew that the best organic beauty products for your body were made from natural resources offered by the earth.

For your best health, always buy organic. Look for the products that don’t contain preservatives, dyes or any other type of chemical. You’ll not only look fantastic, but your body won’t have to pay the price for looking good.