Health and Good Habits

Adopting a series of good healthy habits on a daily basis is essential to prevent disease and maintain proper health. Among them are physical exercise and a healthy and varied diet.

Living a life based on healthy, good habits is essential for good health. According to the WHO (World Health Organization), the term health is defined as a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being.

This concept goes far beyond the presence or non-presence of diseases or illnesses. To achieve good health, it’s essential to take good habits on a daily basis. Diet, physical exercise, disease prevention, work, our relationship with the environment, and social activity are part of these habits.

In this article, we’ll share a series of good habits to help you lead as healthy a life as possible.

1. Good habits: healthy and balanced diet

Yes, it may sound like a cliché, but it’s true. Many of  the factors that affect our health depend on the diet we follow. Food provides us with the necessary nutrients so that the body can carry out numerous essential reactions for its proper functioning.

In addition, the deficit of these nutrients often triggers diseases, such as anemia due to lack of iron, rickets due to lack of vitamin D or hypocalcemia due to lack of calcium. Our diet is even essential to provide us with the energy required on a day-to-day basis. Eating badly can often cause a state of constant fatigue.

In this way, having good eating habits will help you prevent diseases and avoid daytime fatigue.

We’re talking about a balanced diet that includes, in adequate proportions and in sufficient quantity, all the foods included in the nutritional pyramid. The daily energy value of the diet should be 30-40 kilocalories per kilo of weight.

The adequate daily intakes of the different nutrients are:

• Carbohydrates: 50-55% and simple sugars should not exceed 10%.
• Fat: 30% of the total energy value.
  • Monounsaturated: 15-20%.
  • Polyunsaturated: 5%.
  • Saturated: no more than 7-8%.
• Proteins: 10%.
• Vegetable fiber: 20-25 grams.

2. Avoid toxic habits

Both tobacco and alcohol and other drugs have a very negative impact on health. The only exception here is with beer and wine. Many experts recommend a glass of wine a day.

Smoking is a risk factor for many diseases, especially those that affect the heart, liver, and lungs. In this way, it’s one of the main predisposing factors for the development of cancer.

Tobacco

The WHO defined tobacco as the leading cause of preventable death in the world. This statement is based on the fact that, at the beginning of the 21st century, it was estimated that this habit was responsible for more than 5 million deaths each year and about 100 million deaths throughout the 20th century.

When a person stops smoking and begins to obtain good healthy habits in this regard, within 20 minutes of doing so, blood pressure and pulse return to normal, as well as body temperature. Within 8 hours of quitting tobacco, the level of carbon monoxide in the blood decreases.

After 1 day, the risk of suffering a cardiac event decreases and, after 2 days, the sense of smell and the sense of taste begin to recover. From two weeks to 3 months, circulation improves, and by 9 months, coughing and fatigue also decrease.

After a year without smoking, the risk of coronary heart disease is half that of a smoker. After 5 years without smoking, the possibility of developing cancer of the mouth, throat, esophagus, and bladder decreases by half. The same happens with lung cancer after 10 years.

Alcohol

Alcohol addiction can choke your life, as it not only has many physical consequences, but also psychological ones. It’s one of the main reasons for mental health consultation. It’s characterized by excessive alcohol consumption for a long time, which implies dependence on it.

Giving up alcohol is another of the good habits that we propose in this space to maintain good health. Some advantages that the abandonment of this addiction brings are:

• It improves mood
• The senses of taste and smell recover
• The appearance of the skin improves
• Body odor changes
• The risks of suffering from certain diseases are considerably reduced
• The cognitive system improves
• It reduces the risk of suffering from cardiovascular diseases, since alcohol raises blood pressure, the amount of fat in the veins and arteries, and the possibility of suffering myocarditis.
• It improves your sex life
• Helps to lose weight.

3. Good habits: do physical exercise

The general recommendations on physical exercise are about 30 minutes a day. No need to go for a run; brisk walking is enough to prevent a host of diseases and keep us fit.

Doing moderate physical exercise allows you to burn excess calories and strengthen your muscles and bones. It’s also beneficial for controlling blood pressure, cholesterol levels, and blood glucose levels.

In this sense, getting used to exercising daily is also good for reducing stress and improving sleep quality.

4. Hygiene

Another important point is to have good hygiene habits. By adopting this recommendation, many health problems can be prevented, from infections to dental or dermatological problems. Keep in mind that the term ‘hygiene’ doesn’t refer only to personal hygiene and cleanliness. The word hygiene also affects the domestic sphere.

5. Good habits: sleep well

Sleeping well is one of the most important ways to improve the quality of life. There is no doubt about it. Bad or insufficient sleep can lead to physical and mental disorders. Therefore, it’s recommended to sleep a minimum of 7-8 hours.