We used to go to doctors for advice. What to do with such and such symptoms? Can such and such a medicine be taken? Is this diet right for me? But even new technologies and the latest advances in science do not always help explain the symptoms. Doctors are more likely to make assumptions based on facts than make accurate diagnoses. This is especially true for the work of therapists.
Prevention is another matter. Much is known about it because there is a large amount of epidemiological research. In general, everything is quite simple, and you have probably heard these tips more than once. But precisely because they are so often repeated, many stop paying attention to them.
Let us remind you again: there is no shortcut to health. To live long and feel good, you need:
- get enough sleep;
- move more during the day;
- eat healthy foods, prefer vegetables and not overeat;
- communicate more (isolation harms both body and spirit);
- remember what you are grateful for in life.
This approach is detailed in Dan Buettner's books on the so-called blue zones. These are places on the planet where people get sick less and live the longest. They often live for over a hundred years. Main Blue Zones:
- Okinawa, Japan;
- Ikaria, Greece;
- Sardinia, Italy;
- Nicoya, Costa Rica;
- Loma Linda, USA.
In these places, preventive medicine is an integral part of daily life. Residents of these areas eat a lot of vegetables, walk often, and maintain close relationships with family and friends.
Curiously, they usually do not avoid alcohol. Just limited to one or two servings a day. They also eat meat, but rarely and little by little. What they don't use is refined sugar. They don't buy the packaged foods we are accustomed to.
Start applying these simple tips today and gradually your life will change for the better.
Posted by John Schumann. Physician, President of the University of Oklahoma at Tulsa, author of the medicine blog Glass Hospital.
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Translation: ELENA EVSTAFIEVA