In modern days Health is going worse not better. Lifestyle or chronic diseases are going epidemic.  As per WHO’s data, chronic diseases contribute to 71% of all deaths globally.(1)Obesity, heart disease, diabetes, allergies, asthma, or autoimmune diseases are rising day by day. All these begin from your lifestyle habits and are built not in a single day but over a period of time. If you want to escape from those chronic illnesses you must need to address the fundamental root factors. If you are going to treat the pain or symptoms only, you can’t escape from those diseases. Here we are figuring out 7 simple steps to achieve perfect health for your information.

In today you must give your time to learn healthy habits as well as healthy foods. Otherwise you have to give your time for illness. All marketed as healthy may not healthy rather some affects negatively. So you need to understand some basic things to safeguard your health.

7 simple steps to achieve perfect health

Avoid or take control over some foods

Destruction needs lesser time than to build up. And so, you need to avoid or at least take control over some kind of foods.

With industrialization three common food villains have come, sugar(know more about 9 negative health effects of sugar, hidden names of sugar and sugar alternatives) , refined floor and industrialized vegetable oils like cottonseed, safflower, corn, soybean, canola oil (most canola oils are from GMO source). Most vegetable oil contains higher percentage of polyunsaturated fatty acids specially omega 6 polyunsaturated fatty acids. Being comparatively unstable polyunsaturated fatty acids are less heat tolerant and vulnerable as well as more prone to oxidation. When oil or fatty acids undergo oxidation they form harmful free radicals and toxic substance. (2)

Free radicals and toxins are leading promote inflammation and chronic inflammation is the leading factors of most modern chronic diseases, also causes early aging. Saturated or mono unsaturated fats have comparatively higher resistance to heating but oils with higher percentage of polyunsaturated fats are not good for cooking. (3) You also need to avoid hydrogenated oil or industrialized trans fats. Those refined, bleached, deodorized and heated low grade industrialized oils mostly fill up the store shelves as well as used in making of those low quality cheap processed foods. (4)

Know more about cooking oil guide: how to choose right cooking oil for you.

Along with them synthetic chemical additives are also coming. Sugar, processed food, refined flour, most industrial processed soy product are not healthy.  Most cereals, breads, crackers, cookies, pastries, muffins, fruits juices, fast foods are loaded with sugar, unhealthy oils, refined flour. Refined flour significantly loss it’s nutritional and antioxidant value during processing (5) and contains calorie as major. Also many soft drinks, packaged fruits juices looking as healthy are loaded with large amount of added sugar.

Know more about 8 adverse health effects of sugar and sugar alternatives

Imagine when these three, refined industrialized vegetable oils with higher percentage of polyunsaturated fatty acids, added sugar and refined floor combines and comes to you in a form of processed foods.

Gluten a protein from wheat, barley, rye and some oats is not only sensitive to people with celiac disease but also participate in development of intestinal permeability or leaky gut.  Probably we may know. Wheat gluten proteins consist of two major fractions: the gliadins and the glutenins. Lectins a carbohydrates binding proteins, found in beans and legumes, whole grains, peanuts and certain vegetables with higher percentage has both positive and negative health effects. In smaller amount they may provide benefits but when consume in larger amount they may reduce your body’s ability to absorb nutrients. You can reduce lectins content by cooking, sprouting or fermenting such foods.

Read more about Complete Guide to read tricky food nutrition label.

Smaller amount of such food may not make you sick but large or excessive amount definitely has the ability to make you sick.

Avoid or control exposure to toxins

Toxins affect your body through numbers of ways, affects brain, damage cells leading the numerous diseases including cancer. (6) Modern day’s toxins are not only come from environmental toxins like lead, mercury, but also come from sources like foods, plastics, polluted water, some drugs. Smoking and consumption of excessive alcohol increases toxicity. High industrialization, processing alters properties of foods, many of them becomes toxic to health. High or over heat changes properties of foods/oil when reaches their thermal points and food can become toxic. Apart from those chemicals, pesticides used in farming can negatively affect. Control your exposure to such toxins. Drink more water to cleanse, include food with high antioxidant, improving body’s natural defense will help. Choose organic as far as possible. Long distance food supplier uses more chemicals in food to avoid decomposition. So choose locally grown food as better option.

Nourish the organic lives inside tiny cells inside your body

Nutrition deficiency is one leading cause of long list of chronic diseases in modern lifestyle. Apart from water and oxygen life in your tiny cells needs vitamins, minerals, proteins, fats and energy for growth, repair and numerous regulatory functions. Deficiency results in cellular damage, numerous chronic diseases, impaired immune function, premature aging as well as improper psychological function.

Don’t only eat, nourish your body.

Quality weighs over quantity. Calorie counting will not help in weight loss for long term. It is healthier choice to opt for unrefined, whole food than those refined foods with low in calorie. Choose naturally occurring, unprocessed fats, oils than refined fats and oils. Usually people don’t over eat whole food. Whole foods give you fullness as well as nourish your body. Your body will tell you, it got enough, now stop it. But process foods don’t. You tend to eat more and more. What gives signal you to eat more, you or bacteria inside your gut?

Not all packaged foods are bad. Read our article about food nutrition label.

Choosing wide range of fruits and vegetable along with good source of proteins and fats helps you to fill the gap of nutrition intake. You will see some foods like beans, legumes, grains, nut, buckwheat last for longer periods without decaying and they contains anti-nutrients. (7)Anti-nutrients prevent nutrient from being absorbed. Method like water socking, sprouting, fermenting degrade anti nutrient properties and make them better consumable.

With rising popularity of paleo diet which eliminates grains, peoples are now avoiding grains. Grains were not a major part of diet of our ancestors also our close relatives chimpanjee i.e. were not a major part of diet that human body were designed to eat. Grains became popular after civilization of human and starting of cultivation. Also there were numbers of quality studies which had shown benefits of whole grain.(8,9)

So what you will do?

If you feel good or like grain you can add to your menu and on the other hand if you feel bad or sick you better should avoid grains. You can also get the nutrients of grain in other foods. So always listen to your body. One food giving better results to one may not give the same result to you.

Today peoples are less exposed to sunshine usually stay major times of the day under shades. So apart from other deficiency vitamin D deficiency is very common in modern lifestyle. Hence it is wiser to supplement vitamin D from a good source with higher bio availability if you are in deficiency. We will come shortly about best form, sources, along bio availability as well as combination of vitamin D.

Go for whole foods as well as read the label of packaged for carefully.  And also listen to your own body, one food giving good result to one may give the same affect to your body.

Supplement your body wisely

Why do you need supplement? Modern day’s food is not exhaustive, even most are inclined towards downside. You need to feed your tiny cells optimally to keep it as far as healthy, disease free. Some of important components decline with your age, even faster rate with sedentary lifestyle. So, you will step to lifestyle diseases of modern days. So, your body needs supplementation in proper way if you are getting those nutrients directly from foods.

But beware. With increasing demands of supplement some manufacturers including pharmaceutical company have practiced manufacturing of synthetic supplements. So what is the difference? Supplement from natural source i.e. from food based are biodegradable, high bio-availability. So your body can break it down more easily and can absorb. Bio availability refers to the portion of the food absorbed by your body.

On the other hand supplement made from synthetic chemical has low bio-availability, you body can’t absorb them in proper way. They are low grade, low bio-availability, low cost and will not give you the required results. Apart from that substances made from synthetic chemicals are foreigner to the organic life inside the body. And even they can create toxicity and some other health problems. (10, 11)

Natural products can help people to live healthier as well as happier life.

Unfortunately, manufacturer can label supplements as natural even if the supplement contains smaller percentage of natural source. Also a natural source of supplement may come with toxic ingredient or contamination from polluted world. (12)

Each supplement has its own characteristics, right combinations right dose interaction with other food supplements or drugs. Factors like source of supplement, method of preparation, third party certification matters in selection. In today’s polluted world a good supplement doesn’t come at cheaper cost. Also a supplement with high end price can’t be always said as good. They may come with extra additive, extra marketing cost. You need to either learn about these or take guidance from an expert.

Keep your gut healthy

Many years ago father of modern medicine Hippocrates had told-“All disease begins in the gut”.

You gut is connected with most of the organs. If you have unhealthy gut then you can be vulnerable to many disorders.

You gut contains a residence of huge number of microorganisms which has been estimated to around 100,000,000,000,000 (100 trillion).  All are living with you like a ecosystem.Intestinal bacteria play a crucial role in maintaining immune and metabolic balance and protecting against pathogens and many other diseases. Altered gut bacterial composition (dysbiosis) has been associated with the development of many inflammatory diseases and infections. Antibiotic treatment dramatically disrupts both short- and long-term microbial balance, including decreases in the richness and diversity of the community. (13) So use antibiotic when you need absolute requirement after consultation with physician.

Apart from nutrition deficiency alcohol, sugar, stress, toxins, inflammatory foods, protein like gluten, Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) negatively affect the gut. Avoid foods, chemicals that can create inflammation and irritates gut lining.

Probiotics as well as prebiotics (fibrous food  such as bananas, onions and garlic, flaxseed, apple’s skin,  oats, Jerusalem artichoke, Asparagus, chicory root, beans,  Dandelion greens and many others) and fermented food like unsweetened yoghurt helps in restoration of gut flora. Usually fiber moves through small intestine undigested(if you doesn’t have SIBO) and fermented in colon and thus helps in feeding gut flora. If necessary you may supplement with probiotic after consultation with healthcare provider. However don’t use probiotic supplement when you are critically ill. Later we come with details about best probiotic supplements along with information about healing and restoration of gut health.

Manage stress, sleep properly

Chronic stress is evolved as major risk factor to human health in today including heart disease. Job related stress, no time with extremely packed schedule, financial stress, arguments disputes in family, moving through traffic and many others bring pains as well as numerous health related issues to lives in present days. Following measure can help you in managing stress.

• Learn to say no. Taking responsibility on everything can make you stressful.
• Limit your watching negative things in TV. In most time news are in negative ways. Limit watching such news.
• Avoid people or talking that negatively affects you. Find time with friends, good wisher, with whom you can share thoughts.
• Analysis yourself, do some planning for your work but don’t be extremely time scheduled. Do some wise planning for your vacation.
• Find some time for your own activity which gives pleasure to you, can make you happy.
• Yoga, meditation also helps in managing stress, developing peace of mind.
• Don’t be frustrated with your work or goal, behind every success there are pain. Harder you work, brighter your results.

Sleep deprivation negatively affects to the health in many ways. On an average your body need 7-8 hr sleep in a day. Don’t stay in late night, go to bed earlier, don’t watch anything exiting before bedtime, use blackout shades in bedtime, if possible turn off your digital devices. Exercises improve daytime activeness and night time sleep and also help to drain stress.

Be physically active

Study confirmed that sedentary behaviors have been directly associated with all-cause mortality. Television viewing was directly associated with all-cause mortality.(14)Also data from 222 497 Australian Adults 45 years or older concluded that Prolonged sitting is a risk factor for all-cause mortality, independent of physical activity.(15)

Only doing exercise will not help you enough if you are spending rest of the time in a inactive way like sitting or resting in bed. Do walking when you have option, avoid lift if you can climb the stairs. Spend less time in sitting, walk or move in office. Do some exercises 15-30 minutes of moderate to vigorous activity five days a week. You can also add some light or moderate weight training in your workout plan.

Cell phone radiation?

Mobile phones emit radio frequency energy, a form of electromagnetic radiation and your tissues close to the phone can absorb those. The amount of radio frequency energy that a mobile phone user is exposed depend on factors like the technology of the phone, the distance between the phone and the user, the extent and type of mobile phone use and the user’s distance from cell phone towers. Cell phone has greater risk potential for the case of children than adults in developing brain cancer from cell phones. Their nervous systems are still developing and therefore more vulnerable to factors that may cause cancer.(16)

Some studies suggested possibility of long term high end use of cell phone may be linked with certain types of cancers, lower sperm count, inactive or less mobilization of sperm, headache, effect in behavior, memory, learning, sleep etc.(17) Science is still very clear about effect of long term use of cell phone in adults. That needs more research as well time to understand better.

However you may some preventive steps:

• Use a hands-free device, which places more distance between the phone and the head of the user.
• Keeping cell phone away from the body as far as possible and also when not in use.

Final word

These are some basics. I hope it will help you in some way to stay away from chronic diseases. And finally choice is yours. It is your health and it is your choice. Be happy my friend, be happy.

Disclaimer: The above article is for informational purpose only.
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