Healthy DOs and DON’Ts to stay safe and healthy in 2024

World Health Day is a global health awareness day celebrated on April 7 of every year. From its inception at the First Health Assembly in 1948 and since taking effect in 1950, the celebration has aimed to create awareness of a specific health theme to highlight a priority area of concern for the World Health Organization. In this article we will discuss healthy DOs and DON’Ts to increase the health awareness on this World Health Day.

Over the period of past 50 years World Health Day has brought to light important health issues such as mental health, eliminating malnutrition, maternal and child care, physical health hazards and climate change. The COVID-19 has increased the health relates risks. This has also amplified the gender, social and health inequities.

The theme for World Health Day 2024 is : Health For All

Here’s a simple check list of  Healthy DOs and DON’Ts you can follow to keep yourself healthy, stay safe and free from infections in 2024.

Healthy DOs – What you should DO ?

Here are the Dos of Healthy dos and don’ts for staying safe, fit and healthy

1. Exercising daily

One of the key to better health is regular exercise. It is vital to incorporate a minimum of 30 -45 minutes of exercise in your daily life. Include it in your daily morning routine is possible. It will give better results to do exercise in the morning.

The most popular and inexpensive way is a brisk walk which will cover around 3 to 5 KM in weekdays. Ensure you do it at least for 30 minutes and have a bit of sweat after doing it.

On weekends you may stretch your time frame with few minutes to have your body get used to for more long durations.

You may also join Gym or fitness club to have regular exercise.

2. Stay Hydrated

Consume more water and stay hydrated. Water is non-caloric, it plumps up your skin, and it hydrates your muscles. Dehydration brings in many health issues to human body.

Dehydration is a continuous process but unfortunately, some of us only drink water when the body shows symptoms of thirst. Every individual’s body dehydrates differently.  Don’t wait till you’re thirsty to drink. By the time you feel thirsty, you’re already slightly dehydrated. Whether or not you feel thirsty, it is important to drink a minimum of 2-3 Ltrs. of water a day between intervals.

3. Use more vegetables and fruits

Fruits and vegetables and  are an important part of a healthy and balanced diet, and variety is as important as quantity. No single vegetable or fruit provides all of the nutrients your body need to be healthy. Eat plenty every day.

A diet rich in vegetables and fruits lowers the blood pressure, lower risk of eye and digestive problems, reduces the risk of heart disease and stroke, prevent few types of cancer, and have a positive effect upon blood sugar, which can help to keep your appetite in check. Ensures eating fruits and vegetables of five different colours daily.

4. Consume nuts

Nuts are rich sources of fat, fiber and protein. These helps to gain good amount of carbohydrates, proteins, vitamin, zinc, iron, oxalate, selenium, potassium, magnesium, vitamin E and calcium if taken in the right amount. A handful of nuts will help you stay energetic and also keep unhealthy cravings at bay.

Eating nuts on a regular basis may improve your overall health, it reduces diabetes and heart disease risk, as well as cholesterol and triglyceride levels. This nutritious high-fiber treat may even aid weight loss — despite its high calorie count.

5. Get a good sleep at night

A sound sleep at night is as important as regular exercise and a healthy diet. Everyone needs sleep, getting quality sleep and having enough of it at the right times; plays a critical role in your health and well being.

Sleep deprivation, or getting poor quality sleep, increases the risk of disorders including high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, obesity, diabetes, and depression. Lack of sleep also affects your daytime energy, productivity, and emotional balance.

6. Stay Happy

The mantra of living a healthy and quality life is to stay happy. Being happier makes you healthy. Do activities that relax you and put a smile to your face. Invest your time in a hobby, play a sport or take up something you truly enjoy. Make a work life balance and spend some quality time along with your family members.

Happiness lowers the risk of cardiovascular disease, controls blood pressure, enables better sleep, improves  diet, and reduces stress.

7. Practice Mindfulness

Mindfulness techniques help improve physical health in a number of ways. It can help to relieve stress, treat heart disease, lower blood pressure, reduce chronic pain, improve sleep, and alleviate gastrointestinal difficulties.

Mindfulness can play critical role in improving mental health issues. It can help you to increase your ability to regulate emotions, decrease stress, anxiety and depression. It can also help you to focus your attention, as well as to observe your thoughts and feelings without judgment.

Healthy DON’Ts – What to AVOID ?

So, while talking on healthy do’s and don’ts, we have talked about the DOs or good habits, here are some DON’Ts or habits you need to let go in order to ensure a healthier lifestyle.

Don’t ignore guidelines on COVID-19

No carelessness on following the government guidelines on COVID -19. The second wave of Corona Virus spread is ON and it’s spreading at fast pace. Considering the rising number of cases, the best way to fight COVID is following the safety measures. Please do not ignore the safety norms and guidelines issues by government authorities.

Wear a mask, use hand sanitizers, frequently wash your hands with soap, practice social distancing and most importantly invest in boosting your immunity. Get vaccinated, when your turn comes.

Avoid junk food

With the shift in working culture and boost in online ordering, it has been observed that both teenage and working-class population have switched to junk and processed food. If you have an active and healthy lifestyle, you may have cheat days twice a month. Focus on home made food. Maximum nutrition and satisfaction an individual can receive is from homemade food.

Give up smoking, alcohol

Smoking causes about 90% (or 9 out of 10) of all lung cancer deaths. Smoking causes about 80% (or 8 out of 10) of all deaths from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Cigarette smoking is injurious for health and increases risk for death. Smoking causes cancer, heart disease, stroke, lung diseases, diabetes, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), which includes emphysema and chronic bronchitis. Cigarette smoking also increases risk for tuberculosis, certain eye diseases, and problems of the immune system, including rheumatoid arthritis.

Smoking harms not just your physical health, but your mental health too. The effects of long-term tobacco smoking on areas such as learning and memory are less well known.

Over time, excessive alcohol use can lead to the development of chronic diseases and other serious problems including: High blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, liver disease, and digestive problems. Cancer of the breast, mouth, throat, esophagus, liver, and colon.

Quitting drinking and smoking will save you from so many diseases as mentioned above. If you are a heavy drinker or chain smoker, give up the drinking and smoking right now and you will see the difference.

Avoid processed food

No white flour, sugar, and fried food. Avoid processed foods that are robbed of nutrients. Consumption of sugar, white flour, and fried foods affect your health in many ways. Processed foods like white flour raise LDL bad cholesterol, fats leading to several lifetime health issues.

Fried food absorbs a lot of oil which result in high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and risk factors for heart diseases.

Avoid processed foods as much as possible and eliminate from your diet if possible.

Reduce screen time

Reduce your screen time, be it mobile phones, laptop, tablet, desktop or television. There are many possible negative health effects from spending too much time in front of a screen.

Sitting for hours at a time in front of screens boosts the risk of obesity, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and some types of cancer. It also make a severe impact on your eyes and create vision problems. Over a period of time, you are straining your eyes, spinal cord and brain.

Few people have habit of using such electronic devices and browsing the social media for hours. It results in sleep deprivation , which escalates the health issues further.

What are some healthy DOs and Don’ts that you regularly incorporate into your daily life? Let us know in the comments below. Your experience  on healthy DOs and Don’ts is much appreciated.