7 Simple Steps for a Better Life
By Dr. Paula L. Ruffin
Eat well
You’ve heard this before, but the bottom line is you can’t escape this simple fact: no pill or potion or any amount of packaged diet foods will ever take the place of simply eating well!
Avoid ANY artificial sweeteners, flavors, and colors. This includes Nutrasweet, Splenda, and sucralose. Any artificial ingredient is toxic to your nervous system. People who ingest artificial sweeteners are on average 7 lbs heavier than the rest of the population. Many supposed health products are made with artificial sweeteners, flavors, and/or colors. These additives DO NOT promote good health! A little label reading goes a long way!
Eat fresh foods!! Fill your plate with veggies at every meal and STOP eating foods from a box! Become a squirrel. That means travel with healthy snacks everywhere you go. Good snacks are almonds/walnuts, apples, any type of veggie. Most “nutrition” bars on the market are very high in sugar and when they claim to have high protein and low carbs they probably have artificial sweeteners.
Drink more water. Drink ½ of your body weight in ounces/day. Add more if you exercise and/or drink caffeine in the morning. Add the juice of 1 organic lemon/day to your water.
Stop drinking soda, diet or otherwise!
Think well
Be nice to yourself!! Positive self talk is the key to gaining a better state of mind. How many times have you called yourself a name today?? Catch yourself next time you drop a pencil and you call yourself “stupid” or “clumsy”. I guarantee if I called you names you wouldn’t like it very much! So, why is it okay to call yourself names?? Change how you talk to yourself and you will change how you feel about yourself.
Breathe Well
Most people go days or even weeks without taking a deep breath. Deep breathing relaxes the body and mind, improves healing, and even sleep. Deep breathing alone has been shown to decrease stress and help with weight loss. A simple deep breathing exercise: sit or lie down and close your eyes. Imagine a little bubble on the tip of your nose. On a count of 4, inhale forcefully through your nose and imagine breathing the bubble from the tip of your nose all the way down to your naval. Hold for a count of 4. Forcefully exhale through your nose on a count of 4 pushing your imaginary bubble back out to the tip of your nose. Start with 5 of these and work up to 10 or more. You may feel a little lightheaded at first so take your time and build up your stamina.
Move Well
We know the benefits of exercise but exercise without flexibility training puts you at greater risk for musculoskeletal injuries. Practicing yoga or any other forms of stretching provides strengthening, flexibility, balance, coordination, and deep breathing. There are many forms of yoga so choose a class that fits your needs. Yoga is an all-encompassing practice that anyone can do at any age!
Sleep Well
50-70 million Americans have sleep or wakefulness disorders. Sleep is crucial for healing and well being. Lack of sleep leads to increased blood sugar and increased inflammation which contributes to all diseases. Sleep aids are not the answer as they disrupt REM sleep which is necessary for deep, restful sleep. Caffeine stays in the system up to 10 hours so limit caffeine intake. Stress reduction exercises and deep breathing exercises can be helpful.
Poop Well
60 to 70 Million Americans are affected by some digestive disorder. You MUST eliminate DAILY! I’ve heard people say, “once a week is normal for me.” Once a week isn’t normal for anyone! These toxins can reabsorb into your body and cause inflammation leading to chronic disease. Eat fresh often, eliminate gluten and dairy, avoid sugar and processed foods, and get a blood test for food allergies. Lastly, take a high quality probiotic ~ and, no, your daily yogurt doesn’t count!
Live well
Create a positive world around you. Watching and listening to the news and crime shows promotes feelings of fear, anger, negativity, and depression. If there is something important in the news you need to know, I guarantee someone will tell you! Instead, watch a good comedy. Read a book. Write a book! Be kind. Be nice. Smile. Involve yourself in random acts of kindness. Help others. All these things promote good endorphins which improves immune function and an overall state of well being for you and others in your life.
Create YOUR happy world the way YOU want! If we each create our own happy world, we CAN make the world around us a better place!
Dr. Paula L Ruffin, D.C. (248) 486-5684 www.drruffin.com