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How to Improve Your Health and Happiness Naturally - 4 Simple Tips

Learning how to improve your health and happiness is like trying to find a needle in a haystack these days. The good news is that it is really easy when you know what to do. Most men and women want quick results, so they never get anywhere. Here are my personal, proven tips for improving your health and happiness naturally:
1. Exercise
I know exercise isn't the most fun thing to do in the world, but that's just because you haven't found something that works for you.
You probably think you have to exercise in a certain way. I'm here to tell you that you can do whatever you want. Dancing, biking, rock climbing or yoga, doesn't matter, as long as you like it! Exercise keeps you fit, happy and looking good. It's a necessary ingredient in your health and happiness.
2. Whole-Foods
Eating well is brain-dead obvious, but why don't most people do it? It's a habit that has to be practiced. It requires some discipline, but if you're serious about feeling better and improving your happiness levels, it's easy!
3. Meditation
Meditation has been proven to be effective not only in improving your mood, but also your brain function and lowering your stress levels. It doesn't have to be hard. Just sitting down and focusing on your breath is enough. Or just focusing on your muscles when you're doing the dishes.
4. Natural Supplements (My Favorite)
My favorite way of improving my health and happiness is by using natural supplements, such as a cutting-edge multivitamin brand and an omega-3 fish oil supplement.
The best way to find a supplement that really delivers the benefits you want is to look for a reputable company and high quality ingredients, such as green tea extract, resveratrol and l-carnosine.

Achieving Optimum Health and Harmony of Its Dimensions

Being healthy is a basic requirement in order to fully appreciate the good things around us and be inspired to work for the realization of our dreams and goals. It is a fundamental necessity to earn a living in order to survive. When you are not healthy, your routine activities are disrupted. Medical news show that discomforts caused by annoying bodily disturbances or by nagging problems result in persistent unhappy moods that may drain your capacity to cope and adjust.
But then, how do you know you are healthy? Perhaps you may consider yourself healthy but are considered unhealthy by another. You may have your own idea of what characterizes a healthy person. It is indeed better if everyone has a common basis for determining when a person is truly healthy. What then are the qualities that one must have in order to be considered healthy?
To determine the status of your health, you should look into the six dimensions of your life which is the physical, mental, emotional, social, vocational and spiritual dimension. These six dimensions will give ideas to ascertain the level of health. Medical journals say that all these are expected to interact in conformity with each other. Any disorder involving one dimension may affect other dimensions.
Physical health involves the different systems of the body. All the body mechanisms are expected to operate harmoniously to be considered fit in meeting the demands of daily activities. Each system should monitor the functioning of the organs to make the necessary adjustment in order to maintain balance. For example, when you are suffering from loose bowel movement, the other organs that release water such as the sweat gland and the kidneys will be called upon to conserve water to prevent dehydration.
Mental and emotional health can be seen as your way of looking at your ability to perform your task and face problems in an appropriate manner. It is also the capacity to make and apply good decisions and at the same time feel good inside. If you possess mental and emotional health, you are optimistic in life and are appreciative of the things around you. You can also accept disappointments with courage and composure. Social health includes your ability to get along with others and create a relaxed atmosphere by being sensitive and responsive to the needs of others.
Vocational health applies to your behavior and attitude in carrying out the duties and obligations of your chosen career. As an adult, you should consider your attitude in doing your responsibilities as a worker in preparation towards gaining financial independence in the future. Spiritual health is also another important dimension. Any disturbance in the operation of the other dimensions may still be handled as long as spiritual health is maintained.
All these dimensions overlap and interact with one another. Therefore, to be in the best of health and experience fulfillment in life, you should see to it that all these dimensions work cooperatively to attain balance. Be alert with the latest health news and what you can do to maintain optimum health. To achieve this, you have to accept the responsibility of looking after your own health to live longer and at the same time experience satisfaction and happiness.

Top Ten Ways to Improved Health and Fitness

Does it look as if your life is spiraling out of control? Getting rid of stress is all pertaining to taking charge: having to take charge of your current thought processes, your own feelings, your agenda, your own natural environment, along with the approach you deal with difficulties. Typically the supreme goal is actually a balanced life along with time for work, family relationships, rest and fun - additionally the fortitude to hold up under stress and also satisfy challenges head on.

1. Adequate Breath

Practice the following process on a day-to-day basis for 5-10 minutes. Lie on your back, placing a pillow wedge or similar support beneath your knees to relax your smaller back. Position a hand at your stomach and the other on your chest. Slowly and gradually inhale through your nostril and also make certain the only hand that will moves is actually the one upon ones belly. Try to keep the hand on your upper body as still as achievable. Let out your breath by means of pursed mouth and repeat. You actually might become briefly lightheaded following your 1st couple of breaths, but that is definitely a regular response to the particular increase in oxygen uptake by your body.

2. Organization

Are you beginning to feel weighed down through so much to do and so little time? Unclutter your life and also get organized in order to take back control.

3. Satisfactory Drinking water

Lack of fluids stresses your overall body and nervous system. Sufficient water absorption is important for cellular processes. So, just how much must you drink? My personal guidance, multiply your weight in lbs by 0.5 and 0.7. The amounts produced are the range, in ounces, of drinking water an individual should drink every day. There is no need to get started slamming down normal water today. Instead, gradually increase your intake over a four-week time period. Keep in mind that caffeinated drinks are usually natural dehydrators, so for every cup of caffeine beverage you consume, replace them by using 2 cups of standard water.

4. Balanced Snack

Eat balanced eat regularly to control blood sugar quantities. Consuming simply about three meals a day is insufficient with regard to keeping this delicate balance of hormones in check. This is actually recommended that in addition to consuming three normal meals a day, a person combine in 2-3 nutritious snacks. Anyone can notice a renewed feeling of energy and vitality because you deliver your body and brain with the nutrition it needs.

5. Exercising

Once you make it a part of your program, it may become an essential part regarding your healthy and balanced way of life. Make an effort to get 20 minutes a day of some type of physical exercise. Going for a walk is actually a excellent way to begin. Get outdoors in addition to enjoy the open atmosphere while at the exact same time clarifying your mind. Excessive pounds is also a stress on your body. Standard physical exercise may help to remove the pounds, improving your appearance, your health and fitness and your state of mind.

6. Finding "Me Time Period"

Take some solo time every morning prior to you start the actual day. Implement this period to reflect on yesterday and plan out present-day's events. It is a excellent time in order to put together your own "Top 5" list of important things you actually really want to accomplish for the day.

7. Listening to Songs

Favorite songs calms the spirit. This can trigger so many emotions and sense. Produce a specialized assortment of your popular tunes and play them any time you need to get away. Close your eyes along with take yourself back to a place which left a cherished opinion upon your own soul. That will help provide you a restored viewpoint upon your current situation.

8. Studying

Studying can truly alter your existence. Try in order to find twenty minutes a day to look over something positive and reassuring. Stay apart from newspapers and periodicals that are usually filled up with disaster and gloom.

9. Concentrating on Excellent Information

Turn on the TV these days and almost all you observe is certainly negative information. What happened to the actual great news? Precisely what you focus on turns into your actuality. Consequently stop paying attention on the actual poor things in life and concentrate within on the favourable.

10. Better Sleeping

Rest is essential with regard to the particular regeneration associated with body and mind. Lack of sleep leads stress on the immune system and can make you a lot more susceptible to disease. How much sleep should a particular person get every night? The particular answer will depend on on the personal; nevertheless it will be advised to get eight hours of slumber every evening for greatest benefit.

This usually takes thirty days to form a brand-new habit. Attempt these top 10 pressure busters for just 1 month and anyone can modify your current life. Perhaps if you cannot perform all of them, begin using a handful of and also observe just how much less tension you have in your life.

How Modern Computer Systems, Like Xbox Kinect and Nintendo Wii, Can Improve Health and Fitness

The gaming industry is forever at the receiving end of wide-spread criticism from parents, teachers and critics. Most games are 'Violent' with nothing but "blood, gore and battles', it is often said. To a large extent, it's true and the gaming industry does have an Achilles heel. However, did you ever think that Health and Fitness can be improved by playing games on modern gadgets like Xbox and Nintendo Wii? Could playing games be possibly therapeutic? Some research seems to suggest so:
It reduces pain: If you are wondering how playing video games can reduce pain, according to the American Pain Society, our focus diverts away from any seemingly bothering pain points on your body and makes you to forget about pain, at least temporarily. More specifically, the study reports that patients undergoing Chemotherapy reported a great level of stress reduction and lessened fear. It is believed that the brain releases endorphins during gaming that generally makes us feel good.
Learning: While it might seem totally counter-intuitive, games play a crucial role in learning and development. According to an article on cited.org, games fall into the category of "interactive multimedia" where learning occurs through user control. For instance, a game called "Discover Babylon" enables students to scour through an ancient Mesopotamian route and time just by using basic skills like mathematics, reading and writing. In yet another game called Chemsense, students can tinker with chemical compounds and experiment virtually. Most of the other modern games on Xbox, Play station and Personal computers might be termed as 'violent' by critics, but there's a sense of spatial skills development, cognitive learning, adapting to various environments, etc.
Motivation: Games are intensely engaging and users usually experience a heightened state of excitement during play time. The scores, leader boards, team play, group wins, individual wins all provide a pumped up level of motivation for users - the very reason why games are so addictive. In fact, this addiction is a growing concern in the U.S alone with about 92%of kids under the age 18 play regularly. While the addiction part of the story is disconcerting indeed, when played in moderation games can really keep users' energy levels up, bring out a sense of "fighting to win" and invoke an increased level of action among users.
A Sharp and alert Mind: Playing video games, online games or even massive multi-player games have a direct impact on the level of alertness of your mind. CBS news mentions a report released at the University of Rochester, gamers who play games like Grand Theft Auto and Counter-strike have better visual skills, faster cognition, have quick reflexes and have a better ability to process information quickly.
When we believe that anything in excess is bad, it holds good for the time spent on video games. While there are alcoholics, smokers and gluttons there are addicted gamers too. As it stands for most things, moderate use is acceptable and even beneficial in many cases; so are games.

The Three Simple C's to Ensure You Reach Your Health and Fitness Goals

Reducing body fat, increasing lean muscle mass or simply getting a bit fitter to cope with the vigor of everyday life can be a massive challenge. This challenge often becomes frustrating with results often coming very, very slowly. Losing weight, gaining muscle and trying to achieve health/fitness goals are based on a multidimensional parameter. Training type, training time, training frequency, nutrition intake, fluid intake, alcohol consumption, sleep patterns and stress can all play a huge part.
This short article isn't designed to look at the total picture and take every aspect of lifestyle management into consideration. I am simply going to look at the time spent in the gym and how following the 'Three C's' principle will make your time in the gym more efficient and more effective leaving you with more time to do the other things you enjoy in life. It will also make you look forward to your next gym visit and believe me...the RESULTS WILL COME!!!
As a Personal Trainer, I spend half my life in the gym environment and I see these three simple points carried out ineffectively by almost 80% of gym visitors. That means 80% of gym visitors are not implying simple strategies to help them achieve their goals. So what are the Three C's? The Three C's are Continuously, Consistently and Creativity. So let me explain each one individually and how if performed correctly will help you achieve your health and fitness goals.
This may sound strange but a recent survey found that 37% of gym members once they start training do not train continuously. By all means when training there are times when we obviously rest, these rest periods are incorporated into the training program. But coffee breaks, reading the news paper, constant chatting amongst gym members and a distinct lack of focus on the training session at hand is many frustrated exercises biggest downfall. So when we are in the gym lets ensure we are focused ad exercising continuously. A great point using weight loss for an example would be ensuring the heart rate remains above 60%, throughout the whole training session.
The second C is Consistency. Sure one great gym session is going to help, but that alone is not enough. To achieve our goals, for example weight loss we need to be exercising frequently (3 - 5 times per week). So Consistency in following your gym routine is crucial in order to get results.
The final C is Creativity. In order to train continuously and consistently your exercise routine needs to be creative. A creative routine will keep you both physically and mentally stimulated. Rather than using fixed machines three times a week in the same monotonous way, incorporate body weight exercises, dumbbells, kettlebells, medicine balls and stability balls to keep challenging your body. For more advice on these types of equipment speak to a personal trainer at your gym or health club. I'm sure they'll be happy to help!
To sum up and more importantly, ensure that you put this into action follow the three simple points. They will lead to a Fitter, Healthier and revitalized you that gets results from the gym, enjoys the gym and attends the gym regularly:
1) Make sure we train continuously for the allocated period of time in accordance with our training program.
2) Make sure we train consistently on a weekly and monthly basis ensuring each training session is implemented as successfully as possible.
3) Make your routine as creative as possible to kick boredom in to touch. This will ensure long term our exercise routine is sustainable and both physically and mentally challenging.
Healthy Thanks
Sam O'Sullivan
(South Wales, Uk based Level 3 Advanced Personal Trainer)

Sam O'Sullivan is a Personal Trainer and Boot Camp Guru based in Cardiff, South Wales, UK. He is the creator of the highly successful SOS Executive Personal Training Company and Cardiff Kettlebell Boot Camp. His knowledge, enthusiasm as a Level 3 Advanced Personal Trainer with his innovative approach to training has changed many of his clients lives.

Health and Fitness - Alcohol Does Serious Damage!

Life is a precious gift and all through our growing years parents lovingly tend and nurture life, giving us strong healthy bodies that are bursting with vitality. Then we grow up and go off to do our own thing that includes being hell bent on destroying the health and fitness we enjoy. Alcohol is a killer, make no mistake about that! It is wonderful to party and get drunk and we tell ourselves that we are young and life is to be enjoyed. This article covers the repercussions of serious drinking on well being.

Medical research has indicated that a glass of wine or beer or one hard alcohol drink every day is good for the body. Who really stops with one drink? The reason being, alcohol is extremely addictive and once you get caught in its grip, getting out takes some serious effort. Society is plagued by alcoholism, even the young and the saddest part is that the numbers are on the rise, even among pre-teenagers.

You would be hard pressed to find few if any parts of the body that are not negatively affected by the effects of alcohol. Going into the details of every one of the side effects caused by alcohol on health and fitness will take forever; this article covers a few of the scarier aspects of alcoholism. There are short term effects of alcohol like ruined relationships, dysfunctional family life that involves abuse, driving impairment and negative reactions to prescribed medication. In the long term the problems that develop affect health in myriad ways by breaking down the body's defenses and organ functions leading to serious and even fatal health consequences.

The liver is one of the primary organs that is affected by alcohol very negatively. Inflammation of the liver leads to Hepatitis which includes abdominal pains, fever and jaundice. Prolonged abuse unfortunately can be fatal, the good news however, is that when you stop the effects are reversible. Cirrhosis of the liver, which is scarring of the organ is the ultimate result of the abuse and cannot be reversed and may require a liver transplant as a last resort.

The pancreas is the organ that regulates your body's blood sugar levels through the production of insulin and it also helps in digesting the food you eat. Inflammation of the pancreas through alcohol abuse leads to severe abdominal pains and weight loss that can eventually result in death.

Alcohol heightens the risk of various cancers attacking the body and the correlation between alcohol and cancer has been medically proven. Women can develop breast cancer in addition to cancers of the mouth, throat, liver, pancreas and colon.

The Truth Behind Losing Weight Or How To Get Healthy And Fit In 2 Weeks?

It seems that nowadays each year sees the launch of a new diet solution product that is designed to bring about the so much wanted fit and healthy body. As you might suspect this year is no different, around spring people start to look for ways to lose weight they put on during the winter month or in the recent years. From the hyped up launches of these products to alternative and common sense solutions, losing weight is drawing much attention again. This article will explore the many exciting aspects of getting healthy and fit, the great method to achieve that and its impending impact on your body.
Like many mass marketed products from companies, weigh loss products promise that you achieve results within a short time frame only by popping in some pastilles every day without you changing your lifestyle or actively taking part in your progress towards health and fitness. We have seen how these "wonders of the year" quickly fade away to give place to a new, more exciting and promising "discovery of the year" solution leaving you feeling bitter and frustrated, what's more blaming yourself for not achieving what those advertised exceptional people claim. While there have been many reasons for following these trends, people have realised that these products don't usually bring results to the masses.
The ever green common sense solution is to eat less and exercise more. It's easy to say but how can it be implemented in one's everyday life? - you might ask. What exactly are the steps I personally have to take to see results? After failing with several magic products these questions are logical to ask. So maybe there is no magic pushbutton solution people want to believe in so hard... I'm sure a lot of people have given up hope that they can ever lose weight and be healthy and fit again. The good news is: they CAN achieve their dreams by turning their attention to alternative solutions that have worked for more than 7000 years. The best example of this is Chikong (Qigong, Chi Kung)
This method which has worked for such a long time brings results within the first 2 weeks. There is no magic pill involved in it - instead you must take part, actively be involved in order to achieve health and fitness. By this time after failing with so many programs I am sure you realized you have to take action as well. What is fantastic about Chikong is that with a little action from your part - that you actually enjoy doing within days - your body start transforming and you will see great results within the first 2 weeks of your involvement.
As you can probably tell by now you have to actively take your health into your hands instead of going for the new shiny magic pill. As you might suspect it is anticipated that more and more people realise this truth and start turning towards those methods that have worked for thousands of year. They will enjoy getting their health back, being fit and full of energy and a result of this enjoying their lives.

Health and Fitness in Young Children

It's tougher to raise kids today than it was even 10 years ago. Parents now are concerned about diet and exercise as well as kids' safety and development. There are many articles in the news and on TV telling us about the childhood obesity epidemic. The concern is growing because we've created a lifestyle which encourages all of us to sit - in front of the TV, in front of the computer, in front of the Play Station. Every child - even toddlers - needs to get at least 60 minutes of active play every day. It's scary when you read that kids today get less than 15 minutes of vigorous exercise a day, drinks more than 20 ounces of soda pop, and spends more than 20% of their time watching television. No wonder our kids are less fit and more fat than children from the 1960s.
The figures about obesity in children are startling. In only one state, Michigan, 33% of the girls and 34% of the boys are considered overweight. The national average is 29%. And 36% of those boys and girls have elevated cholesterol levels too, which is 11-18% higher than the U.S. average. Nationwide, our kids are developing adult diseases like high blood pressure, diabetes and high cholesterol. We believe our toddlers are active all day because they wear US out, right? In fact, in nursery schools or daycare, they spend most of their time sitting! Our kids need to develop a healthier lifestyle, getting more exercise at the same time they are adopting healthier eating habits. Everyone in America is at risk for these health problems due to our poor eating habits and sedentary lifestyles. Our kids learn by playing, and when they play, they imitate what they see adults do. Being a good example naturally is the best way of teaching your children.
Our kids learn by playing, and when they play, they imitate what they see adults do. Being a good example naturally is the best way of teaching your children. Showing them how to eat right and get more exercise is crucial today. The percentage of overweight and obese kids has more than doubled over the past 30 years. Even thought many factors contribute to this epidemic, our children spend too much time sitting around - a LOT more than they used to. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, the average child watches nearly 3 hours of TV a day - making 5 1/2 hours of sitting per day after adding time spent on video games, computers etc.The AAP (American Academy of Pediatrics) says that children under 2 years of age watch no TV and kids over 2 and above watch only 1-2 hours.
How much exercise is enough? All kids 2 and above need 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous exercise most days of the week (preferable all days). Stretching exercises help improve flexibility, allowing muscles and joints to bend and move easily through the full range of motion. Kids look for opportunities every day to stretch when they try to get a toy just out of reach, practice a split, or do cartwheels. Climbing exercises improves coordination and planning skills.
Kids who get more exercise sleep better, learn better and are healthier. If you as a parent add regular activity into your daily routines, such as taking the stairs instead of the elevator, is key to instilling in your children the way to a healthier lifestyle. Keep it fun and you can count on that your child will come back for more.

Yoga's Health and Fitness Benefits

Yoga has been around a long time-longer than interval training, Zumba classes, and free weights. But can a consistent and challenging yoga practice really lead to overall body fitness? Many experts say yes. But the good news doesn't stop there. Not only can you increase and maintain your level of fitness through a yoga practice, you can also become a healthier person. Let's take a look at some of the specific benefits that yoga practitioners experience.
- Yoga strengthens your muscles-depending on the type of yoga practiced, various poses might be held for several seconds to several minutes-but it also increases your body's flexibility. Ironically, many gym devotees strengthen their muscles by lifting heavy weights, creating strong short muscles that are more susceptible to injury. Yoga, however, strengthens and stretches; a key component to the creation of injury-resistant muscles.
- The power of yoga lies in the breath. Yoga instructors coach students in their breathing-as they move into, sustain, and move out of each yoga pose. Various types of breathing are taught and practiced. More than anything though, yoga lovers are simply made aware of breath and how important proper breathing is to overall yoga technique and everyday living. They come to understand the power of breath, how to integrate breath to get the most out of each pose and how proper inhalation and exhalation can relieve stress, lower the heart rate and increase lung capacity.
- By practicing this type of breathing, you can also up the amount of oxygen in your system. More oxygen means increased energy levels. The more yoga you do, the more energized you feel.
- Daily yoga practice has a variety of positive health benefits. Researchers have found that yoga, when consistently practiced, can relieve the symptoms of arthritis, chronic fatigue syndrome and asthma. Yoga can also bring down high blood pressure and help people manage their weight.
- When you practice yoga regularly and over a sustained period of time, you will experience an increase in your body awareness, diminished stress levels and a fine-tuning of your ability to concentrate.
- Finally, yoga can improve your mood, help you relax and even help you perform better on tests! Yoga often involves unilateral movements (like breathing out of only one nostril at a time) and movements that require students to cross the median line of the body (like touching the left big toe with the right hand). These kinds of movements increase brain activity. More brain activity is a part of better cognitive performance.
As you can see, yoga isn't just about stretching. It is physically demanding, it can increase your overall fitness and help you mentally. Integrate one or two yoga classes into your weekly calendar, and you will see a tremendous difference in all aspects of your physical being.

Train Your Brain With a New $225m Market Based on Latest Brain Health and Fitness Research

A spate of recent news coverage on brain fitness and "brain training" reflects a growing interest in natural, non-drug-based interventions to keep our brains sharp as we age. This interest is very timely, given the aging population, increasing Alzheimer's rates, and soaring health care costs that place more emphasis than ever on prevention and changing lifestyle.
This past Tuesday, the MIT Club of Northern California, the American Society on Aging, and SmartSilvers sponsored an event on The Emerging Brain Fitness Software Market: Building Better Brains to explore the realities and myths of this growing field. Before the panel, I had the chance to present an overview of the state of the Brain Fitness Software Market.
Why are we talking about this field at all? Well, for one, an increasing number of companies are achieving significant commercial success in packaging "brain exercise". An example is the line of Nintendo games, such as Brain Age and Brain Training, that have shipped over 15 million units worldwide despite limited scientific support, since 2005. What is less visible is that a number of companies and scientists are partnering to bring products to market with a more solid clinical validation. We estimate the US market was $225m in 2007 (growing from $100 in 2005). Whereas K12 Education used to be the major segment, adult consumers are responsible for most of that growth: we estimate the consumer segment grew from a few million in 2005 to $80 m in 2007.
Who is buying these products? Yes, of course, many adults over 50 who want to protect their memory are among the pioneers. 78 million baby boomers are eager to try new approaches. A growing number of retirement communities and nursing homes are offering programs to their residents to expand their usual fitness and social activities. And we can't forget about K12 education: certain brain fitness software packages have shown they can help kids who have dyslexia and related difficulties.
Is there science behind these claims? Do these products work? It depends on how we define "work". If "working" means quantifiable short-term improvements after a number of weeks of systematic "brain training" to improve specific cognitive skills, then the answer is that a number of programs do seem to work. If , on the other hand, "working" means measurable long-term benefits, such as better overall brain health as we age, or lower incidence of Alzheimer's symptoms, the answer is that circumstantial evidence suggests they may, but it is still too early to tell.
Are there any public policy implications? We certainly believe that there are. The Center for Disease Control recently partnered with the Alzheimer's Association to develop a comprehensive Cognitive Health road map to better guide research efforts and improve public education on the lifestyle habits that every proud owner of a brain could benefit from following. Given the high rates of traumatic brain injuries and stress disorders found in a large number of the men and women coming home from the Iraq war, the military is investing heavily in research to help identify problems to develop tools to solve them, and we expect that research will translate into wider health applications. No presidential candidate, to our knowledge, has directly addressed his or her priorities in the cognitive health realm but, given the growing importance and economic impact of brain-related disorders, we expect that to happen soon.
What are some trends that executives and investors should be looking at to understand this growing market? Let me make a few predictions:
1) An increased emphasis on Brain Maintenance, from retirement communities to gyms and health clubs. Will health clubs one day offer brain fitness programs, and perhaps "brain coaches"? We think so.
2) Better and more widely available assessments of cognitive function will enable of all us to establish an objective baseline of how our minds are evolving, identify priorities for "workouts" and lifestyle interventions, and help us measure progress. Science-fiction? Not really. there are already pretty good tests used in clinical and medical environments, the challenge will be to refine and package those assessments in a consumer-friendly way.
3) We will see more and better computer-based tools, each of which may be more appropriate to work on specific priorities. Just as we find a variety of machines in health clubs today, in the future we can expect different programs tailored to train specific cognitive skills.
4) More non-computer based tools will also provide much value. There is more and more research on how meditation and cognitive therapy, to mention 2 examples, can be very effective in literally re-wiring parts of the brain.
5) Insurance Companies will introduce incentives for member who want to follow brain fitness programs. Perhaps even companies will offer such programs to employees to attract and retain mature workers who want access to the best and the latest innovations to keep their minds sharp.
Now, this being a pretty new field, many questions remain open. For example, how will consumers and institutions receive quality information and education to navigate through the emerging research and the overwhelming number of new programs, separating reality from hype?
In summary, what were the main take-aways from the event?
1. Research indicates that a number of cognitive abilities (attention, memory...) can be assessed and trained
2. An emerging market is starting to develop-growing from an estimated $100m in 2005 to $225m in 2007, in the US alone-, and is poised to keep growing at significant rates.
3. Many companies are currently selling products direct to consumers (as well as through institutions) with sometimes unclear claims - this threatens to confuse consumers and present a major obstacle to the growth and credibility of the sector.
If you are interested in this rapidly growing field, please stay tuned! There are fascinating research reports every month.
Copyright (c) 2008 SharpBrains

Health and Fitness Level

This article is about the completion of a key element of the proposed medical information system--the national research center.
To realize the most from this article you need to read the 3 previous articles. However, I will try and summarize some of the key points of those articles here.
The most effective means of evaluating a person's health would of course be through some direct means of looking into the human organism to see what is truly taking place. Fortunately, as strange as it may seem, the human body does provide such a window in the form of its biochemical makeup. Furthermore, even more encouraging, there is a science already fully developed that is taking full advantage of that body phenomenon called clinical laboratory science. These are major factors in the success any advanced health care system.
I highly recommend that you take a minute here to read what the experts have to say on that matter by clicking on the link (called page 18) at the end of this article. These experts are from text books located in the University of Michigan's Medical Library.
As described in the link reference on page 18, the advantages of the biochemical makeup of the body is very impressive indeed. Clinical laboratory science is a highly computerized and a very rapidly moving industry. Hundreds of critical tests are now available for use. That industry is an important part of the current health care system. The blood or tissue tests that your doctor orders for you when he or she is suspicious of a given medical condition that needs verification usually involves clinical laboratory science.
The key difference between the proposed national medical information system and the current health care system lies in the difference in the use of these data. The current health care system primarily uses it to evaluate a disease condition whereas the proposed system would apply it on a broader scale basis to include disease prevention and wellness--taking advantage of far more of what clinical science has to offer.
To get a good feel of some of the amazing success in clinical laboratory science click on link (45-47) at the end of this article.
The proposed medical information system would use a completely new and far different type of application of clinical laboratory data. Far larger test profiles (100 blood constituents taken from one blood test) would be used in conjunction with a very sophisticated national research system for massive correlation to human health--including disease prevention and wellness.
Following is a remaining key element of the proposed system.
Article 3 was discussed with the use of handout A. A link to handout A is provided at the end of this article and should be referred to again here. This article will discuss the underlying technical strengths of that system by showing briefly how and why the health data fed into the national research center is so effective in its correlation to human health and wellness.
Referring back to the 100 test profile pattern discussed in article 3, it was shown that the 100 individual bits of test information along with patient environmental and patient data would be fed to the national research computer center (marked case #1). The research computers would record the profile pattern results and correlate that particular combination of test results to a particular health related condition. With the size of this 100 test profile pattern, as discussed earlier, there would be literally trillions of possible combinations involved. Of those trillions of possibilities, there would conservatively end up being at least millions of what we would call significant combinations that would represent significant health related information. The National Research Center would then relate that data to the individual's current health condition, history, family history, the individual's environment, and also to the same data of tens of millions of other patients. This is an enormous amount of health information for the supercomputers to pull together and relate to human health conditions!
In addition, there would no doubt also be smaller sets of tests of interest within that overall 100 test profile, such as separate groups of hormones, enzymes, antibodies and other special tests that could also be read and analyzed as separate group combinations as well. Many of us realize how very important these various groups are to our well being.
Let me stop here and review this for a moment. We talk about millions of significant health data combinations. So why is it necessary for such a breadth of examination capacity? Basically, because of the extreme complexities involving our environment, our health and of course their complex inter-relationship. For example, if we (as individuals) try to determine what it is in our environment that is having an effect on our health, either positive or negative, we know it's usually very difficult to do. We know there are literally dozens of elements (variables) in our personal environment that could affect our health. So how do we go about narrowing it down to determine what it is in a person's environment that is likely affecting his or her health?
The system described here does it in two ways, it uses the extreme reading breadth of the profile pattern (as discussed in article 3), to read an individuals test results along with the input of the environmental and doctor's medical examination report. It was shown that this data was then fed into the national research center system and compared to millions of other patient's health conditions, environments and test results.
This comparison, to the millions of other patients, would soon be very effective in narrowing the unknown element, or elements, down to the common denominator (or denominators) of what it is in the environment that normally affects people's health in certain ways. Very few patients would have the exact same environment and health conditions. Comparing millions of patient's health to their environmental exposures would provide a very effective screening process. The results of this research would then be fed back into the state diagnostic computers to diagnose specific individuals based on their individual profile pattern results and their individual environmental and physical examination reports.
This article discusses the key to success for any highly advanced health care system, and also the sophisticated features of the proposed medical system's research center.

Improve Your Health and Fitness

I am going to tell you why you need to behave more like a cave man in order to stay healthier and happier. Read on cave people......

Over aeons of time, our bodies have adapted to cope with survival in a harsh environment. Although we achieved civilization thousands of years ago, our bodies have not evolved to adapt to this change. If we imagine ourselves back in the distant past we would have eaten less sugar, salt and fat in a year or more than we now eat in a week or less. We would have eaten a diet of meat and fish, mostly vegetable matter, fruit, berries, nuts, seeds and roots. We would only have drunk water, and may have sampled the splendour of honey. Foods would be rich in fibre, some protein, essential fats, vitamins and minerals, but low in sugar, salt and saturated fats. We would have been in almost constant motion; playing, working, foraging, preparing food, but rarely staying still. (I think that it is important to remind ourselves that our body is designed to be active, but that we often think of exercise as formal, vigorous, structured pursuits. It can be easy to persuade ourselves that going swimming or playing football twice a week is enough [and so we have an excuse for driving to work and to the local shops]. And although it is great to do these things, we can stay fit and healthy without a gym membership, just by doing everyday movements; walking, cleaning the house, and gardening, and yes I shall say that well-worn phrase- leaving the car at home.)

Don't think that our person from the past would have been feasting on jumbo mammoth steaks Flintstone-style all day long either. Meat may have been in scant supply for much of the time (have you ever tried to catch a rabbit?) and women and children spent a large amount of time foraging for nuts, roots, berries and vegetable matter. Everyone would have been involved in acquiring food, and all methods of obtaining food would have used large amounts of energy; you have to cover wide areas to provide enough food for a family. Even when farming became a way of life huge amounts of energy would have to be invested in producing the fruits, vegetables and animal products. Animals too would have been reared on a diet of more complex foods rather than modern high-energy processed feeds. It is thought that their meat would have been much less rich in saturated fats and so healthier for the people consuming it.

Food production would have been part of every day life, unlike today where food arrives pre-packed, smothered in cellophane, produced days, weeks or months ago in a factory hundreds of miles away, glazed with wax, identical in size and colour to its neighbour, lacking any aroma, and likely to be lacking in nutrition. Our imaginary person would have experienced real, largely unprocessed food, and a varied seasonal diet (no strawberries at Christmas for Ms Caveperson). It is likely that they would have a relationship with what they had produced. If you ever grow your own fruit and veg you will understand how exciting it is to watch things grow, then how good it feels to harvest and prepare them. People would have wasted nothing- all parts of every fruit, vegetable or animal would be used for something, almost nothing was unusable; today in the UK one third of our food is thrown away and wasted, out of every 2 bagged salads purchased today, one will go in the bin (sounds familiar?).

Another aspect of our imaginary person's relationship to food is the social aspect. People would have produced and processed the food together, celebrated harvests and abundant times, and eaten together as a family or group. Children would help the adults, and learnt how to grow and prepare food ensuring that they would be able to look after themselves as adults. Meal times may have been the only time when the extended family would be gathered together to swap the day's news, gossip and stories. This way people eat more slowly, and eat less allowing their body to feel full and satisfied. Food would have produced social bonding and been a central and essential part of social life.

Life would have been hard, and still is for many people today who have to provide their own food, and so I don't want to over-romanticise this imaginary person. However, I think that this person from the past is a useful tool for understanding what our eating and activity profile should be more like if we wish to be healthier and happier. There would have been no slouching on a sofa in front of the TV, no Chicken Dippas, micro-chips, and definitely (and thankfully) no Pringles. Our imaginary person may not even recognise these things as food.

Underneath it all we are still cave people, our bodies and brains have evolved to take nutrition from simple whole foods, we thrive on human contact and still feel the need to eat together and share food, and our bodies are healthier if we exercise consistently. We need a diet rich in whole foods, in raw foods, and home cooked foods. We should pick foods which are low in sugar, salt and saturated fat. If you are doubtful about the validity of a food, ask yourself how far-removed it is from its natural state, could you make it yourself, would it have existed a hundred years ago or more? If the answer is no then the chances are that it is not very healthy. We need to explore the excitement of foraging for food, growing it and preparing it, we need to rediscover the simple pleasures of podding peas, chopping fresh herbs, picking blackberries, and making pickles and jams.

We can support our 'tribe' by walking down to the local fruit and veg shop, and visiting the local butcher or fishmonger, by using our farmers markets, and supporting local growers. (For each £10 spent in the UK £6 goes into the pocket of Mr Tesco*; local shops are closing, and farmers are making little money due to the pressure placed upon them by supermarkets). We need to get back to the camp-fire and share family food times together, making eating a natural and loving social event where family and friends can interact and bond.

I am not suggesting that you go out and jump on a rabbit and sink your teeth into it, but try to think about the true importance of good food and exercise, and the way that we can improve our health and fitness, enrich our lives and support our community and the environment at the same time. Take a step back in time this week; walk down to the farmers market or the local shops, buy some local produce, take it home and cook it carefully for some people that you love. Unplug the TV and have a good long dinner by candlelight, taking time to talk and enjoy the food. I guarantee that you will feel healthier and happier, and Mr Tesco is hardly going to starve without you!

I hope that this gives you some food for thought,

Creative Ways to Boost Health and Fitness

When it comes to health and exercise maybe you have this image of you just munching through tons of salads, nibbling on raw carrot sticks... and generally eating fairly boring food.

If that's what you're thinking, I have some good news: Eating raw foods does NOT have to be boring. All you need is a little creativity and some special kitchen appliances to create some pretty amazing dishes. Read on...

Blender: If you're drinking whey protein shakes, you may already be using a blender. You can use this blender to make your protein shakes more interesting, such as by adding oatmeal or bananas to the shake. Or you can make fruit smoothies (for breakfast or anytime). For example, make a strawberry-banana smoothie. You can add flax, oatmeal or just about anything else to the smoothie for extra taste, texture and nutrients.

Juicer: If you recall from back in the nutrition lessons, I mentioned that you should avoid any juices that have added sugars or other ingredients. That means you should avoid most juices, because most of them are processed. And sometimes it's hard to find fresh juice.

Here's your solution: Get a juicer. Not only can you make your own fresh orange juice, grapefruit juice and other fruit juices, you can also make vegetable juices (like carrot juice) and seaweed juices. You can even combine different fruits and vegetables. For example, you can use a juicer to create carrot-orange juice or strawberry-grapefruit juice.

Food Processor: Yes, you can do everything with a set of kitchen knives that you can do with a food processor. But the thing is, you can do it much faster with the food processor. In other words, a good food processor can save you a lot of time on cooking day.

Now, obviously, if you're making just one meal, then it doesn't make sense to haul out the food processor. That's because you need to take into consideration the amount of time it takes to clean the machine when you're finished. For a small amount of food (a meal or two), any time savings you create over using a knife is lost in the time it takes to properly clean the machine.

Point is, it's a great time saver... but only if you're using it on those days when you're doing some bulk cooking. Food Dehydrator: While cooking nuts, seeds, fruits and veggies using high heat will rob the food of its beneficial enzymes and some of its nutrients, you can "cook" the food using low heat. In other words, you can dehydrate your food (preferably using a food dehydrator, since your oven probably doesn't have a low enough temperature setting).

Snack idea: You can dehydrate fruits to make fruit chips, like apple chips or banana chips. Then mix your dried fruits with nuts and seeds for a delicious, nutritious snack.

That's it for this time. Next time you'll find out what to do when you want to get more muscle...

Looking forward to talking to you again.

Must-Have Health and Fitness Smartphone

Health and exercise gurus who have weak knees for technology have reason to rejoice! These days it seems there is a smartphone app for just about everything, including personally training, dieting, and tracking medical records.

We have done the research and found the best health care apps for your iPhone, BlackBerry, or Android. These apps make exercising fun, calorie counting easier, and medical research a snap.

Workout Apps

The iPump series for iPhone is a set of five apps designed to make pilates, yoga, stretches, abs and core exercises, and cardio workouts easy. Complete with pictures and step-by-step workout directions, these apps also make it easy to track workouts.

Blackberry's iFitness app has pictures and instructions of more than 230 exercises that target different areas of the body. The app also has features for logging workouts, creating custom workouts, and setting goals.

GymTechnik for Android is an excellent app that takes users through workouts, uses checklists, keeps statistics to help with goal setting, and so much more!

Exercise Tracking and Goal Setting Apps

iPhone lovers looking for an easy way to track their workouts and set goals need look no further than Pocket Coach . This extremely robust and pleasing-to-the-eye app has daily exercises, a goal calendar, accountability reports, push notifications, and even a suggested reading section.

The Total Fitness app for the BlackBerry is the perfect way to meet exercise goals, track fitness progress with graphs, view reports, see exercise animations and instructions, and even track nutrition.

Android users should download the WorkItOut app so they can start logging workouts, scheduling routines, and see their progress.

Running Apps

LogYourRun is an app that routes runs, complete with maps and elevation. It also has the ability to upload workout information to the company's website to present running information as graphs. Users can share their running data on Facebook and Twitter and can even have updates automatically sent to Twitter while they are running. The app also features training programs, a heart rate counter, and playlist options.

For BlackBerry and Android fans, SportyPal is the king of running apps. Users of this app can view their workout on a map, set goals, share their progress on Facebook and Twitter, see their progress on graphs, and more. This feature-packed app can also be used for walking, biking, and even rollerblading.

Nutrition Tracking Apps

With the amazing, and almost unbelievable, app called FoodScanner users can actually use the camera on their iPhone to scan UPC codes on foods to get nutritional information about foods. They can also track their caloric intake, sync with the company's website for more features, and keep a list of favorite foods for quick access.

BlackBerry users can use Calorie Counter to find nutritional information on foods, keep a dietary journal, track daily activity to see burned calories, and keep track of what they are eating.

Calorie Counter for Google Android is a great app for finding nutritional values of foods by searching by food name, restaurant name, grocery store name, and even restaurant name. Like the iPhone app, this app also lets users scan UPC barcodes with the camera on their phone and find nutritional information quickly.

First Aid Apps

iPhone users can have peace of mind when they download Pocket First Aid & CPR from the American Heart Association . This app has instructions for emergency procedures, first aid checklists, and so much more.

The Complete Home First Aid Course app for the BlackBerry prepares users and trains them in how to handle poison cases, heart attacks, wounds, bites, shock, how to perform CPR, and that's just scratching the surface.

The First Aid app for Android does much the same thing and includes videos, illustrated instructions, and a place to store emergency numbers.

Medical History Apps

Imagine sitting in the doctor's office and having your medical history right your fingertips. The Family Care app for iPhone makes that possible. The app organizes medical history, immunizations, personal information like height and weight, blood pressure, allergies, prescriptions, insurance information and so much more, all by family member.

BlackBerry users can download the My Family app and keep track of virtually the same information, so their doctor's visits can go smoothly and be effective. Users can enter information including medical conditions, personal information, medications, immunizations, allergies, and more.

The motionPHR Health Record Manager is perfect for Android users looking for a way to keep their medial history, conditions, family history, immunizations, and more handy and easily accessible.

Medical Resources

The WebMD Mobile iPhone app is the ultimate go-to resource for medical issues. Users can research symptoms, cheek for possible drug interactions, and get instructions for first aid procedures.

BlackBerry users can use Medscape to research drugs and possible interactions and supplements. The app also provides medical news.

Skyscape is an excellent resource for Android fans looking for a way to find medical information. The app includes information on drugs and medicines as well as a medical calculator.

10 Brain Health and Fitness New Year's Resolutions

You have survived the 2007 shopping and eating season. Congratulations! Now it's time to shift gears and focus on 2008...whether you write down some New Year resolutions or contemplate some things that you want to let go of from last year and set intentions and goals for this year - as is a friend's tradition on the winter solstice.

To summarize the key findings of the last 20 years of neuroscience research on how to "exercise our brains", there are three things that we can strive for: novelty, variety and challenge. If we do these three things, we will build new connections in our brains, be mindful and pay attention to our environment, improve cognitive abilities such as pattern-recognition, and in general contribute to our lifelong brain health.

With these three principles of brain health in mind - novelty, variety and challenge - let me suggest a few potential New Years resolutions, perhaps some unexpected, that will help you make 2008 a year of Brain Health and Fitness:

1. 2008 Primaries and Elections: If you haven't yet done so, register to vote - active participation is good for your brain health. But, before rushing out to vote, take some time to think through the criteria you want to set up to evaluate who deserves your vote. Don't let politicians and their spin doctors set your agenda. Ask yourself, what matters most to me? What type of President do I think we need? Why? I personally find it quite intriguing that no candidate so far is resurrecting the "It is the economy, stupid" mantra, and proposing solid plans to get our economy back on track.

2. Next time out shopping: Don't let advertisers treat you as if you were Pavlov's Dog - remember the dog that was trained to salivate automatically every time a bell rang. There is a whole industry out there trying to make you buy stuff on impulse. Notice your reactions to a movie trailer or a TV ad Resist. Be the true "Decider". For bonus points, once you learn to identify and manage your own buying impulses, try explaining this to your kids...

3. Reading habits: If you usually read non-fiction, try something new this season. Pick up a good fiction book. Or vice versa. For bonus points, subscribe to or simply read a new magazine, perhaps one that your partner craves? It will help you understand another perspective.

4. Learn about the Brain: Pick up one of the books in the Science section in your bookstore. In the unlikely scenario that you read as many brain-related books as I do, pick up some Russian poetry book and let's discuss this instead.

5. At work: Find, or create, an intellectually and socially stimulating new job for yourself at your current workplace or a new one. Engaging work has been shown to contribute to lifelong cognitive performance. At the very least, go out of your way to make whatever job you have more stimulating: try talking to a new colleague or client everyday and learn a new thing about them. You will not remember everything, but surely more than if you don't even try.

6. Gratitude vs. the Subprime mess: With increasing coverage of economic woes, the subprime mess, recession risk, the falling dollar and a ballooning deficit, it is easy to lose perspective and become depressed. Which doesn't help anyone, much less our brains. To put things in perspective, it pays off to devote some time to keep a Gratitude Journal and simply scribble a few notes a day. For bonus points: do this while you are watching TV news and share your notes with your partner.

7. Cultivate your Critical-thinking abilities: Ask yourself, "Where is the evidence?" at least once a day - see points 1&2 above. Don't just believe this article. Even if it had been endorsed by 20 Harvard Medical School researchers and doctors, nothing substitutes your own brain in action. And the more you practice, the more you refine your judgment.

8. Participate in creating a better environment. Our planet, our families, our communities, our schools, all can benefit from our help. What project do you care enough to commit some of your time to in 2008? If you have school age kids, have you considered joining the school board?.

9. Computer-based programs: With the growing number of "brain training" products, you may be thinking of giving one a try, either for you or for a loved one. As mentioned in point number 2 above, it makes sense to do some research before making a purchase.

10. Where to start? OK, now you have read many suggestions, resolve to keep at least one of them...which one will you choose?.

Enjoy a Happy and Fruitful 2008, for you and your loved ones!