Important Health Information - 7 Tips To Help You Live A Longer And Healthier Life

Exercise is vital to maintain good health. If you don't exercise regularly your body will decline due to the effects of ageing far quicker than it would if you did exercise. Go for a brisk walk four or five times per week, go swimming, join a gym, or play a vigorous sport. It doesn't matter what you do, as long you get out of breath and work your muscles, so do whatever you enjoy doing. This way you're more likely to stick to it.

Your body needs a wide range of nutrients on a regular basis if it is to function properly. Macro-nutrients (proteins, carbohydrates and good fats), and micro-nutrients (vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients, antioxidants etc.) are needed in sufficient amounts every day. If you don't provide these, you will age prematurely and be at risk of developing a whole range of health problems.

Protein foods include lean meat, poultry, fish, milk, cheese, eggs, beans and nuts. Carbohydrates should be complex, not refined. So that would include whole wheat bread, pasta and spaghetti, whole brown rice, whole oats, other grains and sweet potatoes. Avoid white bread, pasta and spaghetti, white rice and sugar. These are fake foods - they fill you up but don't provide you with the nutrients you need. Potatoes are carbohydrate, but they are a poor choice, as they are part of the poisonous nightshade family and will aggravate any joint pains you may have. Fats are best obtained from oily fish, nuts, seeds, flax oil, olive oil, sunflower oil etc. For cooking, olive oil is the best choice. This is because other vegetable oils break down too much with heat, releasing a lot of damaging free radicals.

Some micro-nutrients will also be obtained from the foods mentioned above, but a variety of vegetables, together with some fruits, are also essential to ensure you get a full range of vital nutrients.

A great many of the health problems we see today are simply the result of eating the wrong foods and not getting enough of the right nutrients. In short, most people are vitamin and mineral deficient to some extent. However, poor dietary choices are not the only cause of this. Even if we try to eat a healthy, well balanced diet we are unlikely to get all the nutrients we need. This is because the food we eat is just not what it used to be. It is largely mass produced on land that has long since lost most of its mineral content. On top of this, many foods are harvested well before they have ripened, so the vitamins and other nutrients have not had time to develop properly. Also, food is often stored for long periods of time, transported long distances, irradiated, processed etc. etc. So no matter how well we try to eat, it's simply impossible to get all the nutrients we need from our food.

To make up for these deficiencies, take a good quality multi-vitamin and mineral supplement daily. But make sure it contains all the essential vitamins and minerals in sufficient quantities and in a form that is readily absorbed by the body.

I use and recommend two products. One is a balanced multi-vitamin/mineral and the other is a calcium, magnesium & vitamin D supplement. Between them they contain a therapeutic dose of all the main vitamins and minerals that you need. They also utilise a revolutionary delivery system called 'fructose compounding' that ensures maximum absorption of all the nutrients, which are then presented to the body in the ideal form to be effectively utilised. Minerals in particular can be very difficult to absorb, as they often bind with other molecules in the digestive tract. This results in them passing straight through, and they often render other nutrients inactive in the process. Fructose compounding prevents this from happening.

Did you know your body is under constant attack? Free radicals are unstable molecules that tear through your body causing untold damage to your tissues, joints, organs, even your DNA. They are produced during normal respiration, but are increased dramatically by stress, pollution, chemicals, smoking, sunlight over-exertion, and many other factors. The world we live in produces a tremendous free radical barrage which accelerates ageing and can be a major cause of a wide range of degenerative diseases such as arthritis, heart disease, diabetes and even cancer.

Antioxidants destroy free radicals. We produce some antioxidants, such as glutathione, in our bodies naturally. But these decline rapidly with age. Other antioxidants are derived from fruits and vegetables, red wine, green tea and cocoa. However, once again it is impossible to get the amount we need from our diet, due to nutritionally deficient foods, and the impact of our modern environment.

So to protect yourself and slow down your ageing process take a high potency, broad spectrum antioxidant formula. Certain vitamins and minerals act as antioxidants, such as vitamins A, C and E, and the minerals selenium, zinc and copper. But there are other substances that have a much higher antioxidant capacity and so give far better results than simply using the antioxidant vitamins and minerals alone. Amongst the most important of these are proanthocyanidins from grape seed and grape skin, alpha lipoic acid and quercetin.

Once again I use two antioxidant products. One is a broad spectrum antioxidant containing the antioxidant vitamins and minerals together with alpha lipoic acid, green tea extract and other substances. The other is more targeted to heart and circulatory health, as well as being great for improving skin tone and quality. But it also has a highly beneficial effect on every cell, tissue and organ of the body. It contains the very best proanthocyanidins available together with quercetin and other ingredients.

Everyone can benefit by taking antioxidants, but if you are over 40 it's absolutely essential.

Being overweight will reduce your life expectancy as well as your quality of life. If you are overweight you are far more likely to suffer from high blood pressure, as well as high blood cholesterol and triglyceride levels. On top of this excess abdominal fat causes your cells to become insulin resistant. This causes you to secrete more insulin, which eventually leads to diabetes. If you have any of these (high blood pressure, increased cholesterol and triglycerides, or diabetes) you will have an increased risk of early death. But if you have two or more, a heart attack or stroke could strike at any time.

In fact being overweight causes all degenerative diseases to be accelerated and puts you at a much higher risk of developing cancer as well. So take measures now to address this problem and start to lose excess fat. Eat a diet that's low in fat and high in fibre. Fibre is cleansing as well as filling, and it helps to reduce cholesterol levels. Reduce or eliminate sugary foods and refined carbohydrates. Take regular exercise. True long-term healthy weight loss is impossible without exercise. And take the correct supplements to help boost your metabolism.

Ideally you should eat two main meals and two to four snacks per day. All of these should include protein and complex carbohydrates. Meal replacement shakes or bars can be a convenient way to get your snacks, but never replace all your food with them, and avoid most commercial brands as they are usually very high in sugar and low in protein. With a little resolve you can change your habits and reach your goal of a slimmer healthier you.

It's well known now that smoking will reduce your life expectancy and seriously increase your risk of developing various types of cancer and other diseases. Smoke contains hundreds of different poisons that attack your body and cause untold damage. Stop if you possibly can. If you find it too difficult use nicotine patches and gradually wean yourself off these.

Drinking can be a relaxing and sociable pastime, and a moderate amount of red wine is actually good for you. But excess drinking will damage and destroy your liver and poison your body. If you want to stay in good health, don't do it.

Did you know that you could be being exposed to all kinds of dangerous chemicals in your home? Some are fairly obvious but some are not so obvious. Your cleaning and laundry products for example probably contain such ingredients as ammonia, phosphates, chlorine bleach, formaldehyde and other abrasive or harsh ingredients. These can cause respiratory problems, allergies and asthma, skin problems, and even increase your risk of cancer!

However your personal care products, toiletries and cosmetics may also contain harmful ingredients such as petroleum derivatives, TEA, DEA, dioxins, fluorocarbons, aluminium, propylene glycol and sodium lauryl (or laureth) sulphate.

Protect your health by choosing safer alternatives. The products I use are high quality, highly effective, free from harmful ingredients and due to being very concentrated (most of the cleaning products need to be diluted for use) actually cost less to use than standard supermarket or department store brands. Using safer products will also put fewer chemicals into the water supply, thus helping to protect the environment.

So there you have it. Follow the above recommendations to improve your health and maintain it through a long, vigorous, healthy and happy life.