Why should you care about your health, anyways?
“Health is not just about nutrition (diet)
and exercises, it is also about what you put in your mind and heart.” – Unknown
In
1948, the World Health Organization defined (WHO) defined health as the state
of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence
of disease or infirmity.
I
guess it’s safe to say we all know the importance of eating light and right as
well as living an active lifestyle. Yet we still hang on to our old and bad
habits eating junk food and sitting passively watching television after 8-hours
sedentary jobs at our work places.
As
Thomas Moffet says, we are “digging our graves with our teeth” as we;
1)
Feed our bodies with high-fat, high
cholesterol and non-nutritious foods,
2)
Poison our system with cigarettes,
alcohol misuse, and substance abuse,
3)
Sit passively in front of our TV sets daily
and spend long hours on social media,
4)
Subconsciously form bad habits instead
forming good ones consciously,
5)
Participate in toxic relationships and
friendships.
According
to DisChem Pharmacies Wellness Clinic, one in every five deaths in South Africa
is the result of heart diseases or stroke. The leading causes of these diseases
are mostly traced in unhealthy diets that include processed foods with high
fats and high cholesterol which eventually lead to overweight and obesity.
Cancer
and Diabetes are among the most common diseases that are killing our people. Physical
inactivity, smoking and substance abuse are also ranked high as major causes of
these preventable diseases. The good news is that these diseases can be
preventable.
The
recent research findings indicate that people are not necessarily addicted to alcohol
or drugs, but are addicted to escaping reality. They resort into alcohol misuse
and unhealthy or bad eating habits to escape their stressful situations.
Depression
and Anxiety have become so real and almost palpable to such an extent that
young people resolve into substance abuse or chain smoking despite being aware
of all the dangers involved. In some cases, these bad habits are formed either
through boredom or stress.
Whatever
the case maybe, we always have the choice to turn things around and start
living a better life. At any given point in our lives, we have to power to
change our mind-sets and love ourselves better. We have the power to forget
what we been through yesterday and focus at the present moment with great
expectations and excitement about the future.
Forgiving
yourself and choosing to love and care for yourself better is the first step
into the journey of recovery and/or self-discovery. It all starts with you.
To
borrow the words of Malanda Jean Claude “Self-love is messy. Breaking old
habits is hard. Telling the truth can be difficult. Falling in love after pain
is scary. Losing yourself can be dark, finding peace isn’t cakewalk – honouring
your emotions take work. May you learn to paint accurate description of love.
Choice.”
As
Jay Shetty beautifully puts it, “Self-care isn’t just about holidays and
massages. It’s also about working on your habits, mindset and healing your
past. It’s removing toxic thoughts, people and places in your life. It’s living
intentionally, purposefully and consciously.”
Most
importantly, “With every act of self-care your authentic self gets stronger,
and the critical, fearful mind gets weaker. Every act of self-care is a
powerful declaration: I am on my side.” Susan Weiss Berry
Often
times people forget that health has a social aspect that is equally important
as physical and mental well-being. These three must be treated equally and
holistically if one is to enjoy long life with good health.
When
you care about your health it means your care about yourself. When you leave a
friendship or relationship that has become toxic means you care about yourself.
When you look for the root cause of your ill health instead of treating the
symptoms means you deeply care about yourself.
To
keep the body in good health is a duty, otherwise we shall not be able to keep
our mind strong and clear. A study conducted during the year 2004 in London, UK
showed that even 10 minutes of exercise could blunt an alcoholic’s craving. Nothing
looks as good as being fit and healthy feels.
The conclude, I will remind you
of the old proverb which says “When are young, we sacrifice our
health for wealth. But when we are old and wise, we become willing to sacrifice
every bit of our health just for a day of good health.” But with you, this
doesn’t have to be the case.
What
you want is to form good habits
that improve your overall health by, helping you stay active, keep you fit and
trim, sharpen your thinking, boosting your memory, improving your mood and
attention, lower stress and anxiety, and help stave off addiction. Always remember to eat well and stay active.
Orison
Swett Marden says “The beginning of a habit is like an invisible thread, but
every time we repeat the act we strengthen the strand, add to it another
filament, until it becomes a great cable and binds us irrevocably.”
What a nice piece, I think this extrapolate why our values stem from the word H.E.A.L.T.H
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely, thank you so much pointing that out. Much appreciated.
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