3 Lifestyle Tips For Improving Your Health

There are several different approaches to improving your health. One approach is to get prescriptions for as many different medications as possible, in order to keep things operating properly. This may currently be the most popular approach to health improvement out there – although, there are plenty of problems with it.

Since ancient times, it’s been known that “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure,” and the father of medicine himself, Hippocrates, said words to that effect.

When you take steps to improve your health through lifestyle modifications, you free yourself from the often pretty serious side effects that come with taking strong medication all the time.

You are often able to actually get at the heart of whatever problems you may be facing – instead of just masking the symptoms.

Major diet recommendations are probably the most common sort of lifestyle modification that gets recommended for improving health. Here are a few slightly different approaches you can take, as well.

Eat more probiotic and prebiotic foods

In the last few years, researchers have been finding out more and more about just how incredibly important gut health is, for the health of the body as a whole.

Researchers such as Tim Spector have pointed out that microbial differences in the gut can be the cause behind identical twins ending up at radically different weights, when eating the same foods.

The state of your gut microbiome also has a lot to do with state of your immune system, and your overall mood, and sense of well-being.

Fortunately, it’s really easy to begin improving the state of your gut microbiome. Be sure to get some prebiotic fibre each day, either through diet or supplements, and some “healthy bacteria” in the form of fermented foods like sauerkraut, kombucha, kefir and other probiotic supplements.

Reduce the amount of “overstimulation” you’re getting in your life

A recent book, entitled “The Molecule of More”, looks at the many ways in which the neurotransmitter dopamine affects our lives.

Dopamine isn’t primarily a “pleasure” hormone, as people tend to think. Instead, it’s more associated with anticipation, satisfaction, and motivation.

Our dopaminergic systems are influenced by novelty. When they are overstimulated, as with an addiction to video games or web surfing, our dopamine receptors become desensitised.

We find it much harder to find motivation and joy in our everyday lives.

Reduce the amount of “overstimulation” you’re getting in your life on an everyday basis, Before too long, you should find that you are enjoying everything a lot more, and feeling a lot more motivated.

Get more low-level physical activity in each day

It turns out that, if you spend the majority of each day sitting down, a daily gym visit isn’t going to be enough as a general rule to offset the negative health consequences of that lifestyle.

Instead, the key to maintaining good health through physical activity seems to have a lot to do with getting a good dose of low-level physical activity in each day.

This could mean cycling to and from work, using your lunch break at work to go for a long walk, or even using a standing treadmill desk. Just try to be more active on a daily basis.

Disclaimer: This is a collaborative post.