Archive for February, 2010

Top 10 Health Tips for 2010



A little over a month into 2010 many of the resolutions that you made in January probably has fallen by the wayside. When the ball dropped on New Years Eve you might have resolved to go to the gym more often or to eat less fast food on, now, in February those promises seem as stale as the fruit cake in the back of your refrigerator. You might be feeling that you still want to change a few things this year but your earlier resolutions didn’t work out; below you will find 10 tips to bring a positive change to your life in 2010:

1.)  Make room for mini meditations through out your day, close the door at your office, hold your calls, and just relax for five minutes. Hubert Benson, the co-founder of Harvard’s Benson-Henry Institute for Mind/Body Medicine, recommends doing this a few times throughout the day. It allows you to turn everything off and recharge.

2.)  With states increasing cigarette taxes and cities banning smoking in bars and restaurants there has never been a better time to quit smoking. Many employers, faith groups, and even some local governments offer resources to help you stop smoking for good.

3.)  Make an effort to have a social life.  Getting bogged down in the stresses of daily life is easy to do. Make a promise to yourself to hang out with your friends at least once a week.

4.)  Be aware of your health. Get a physical this year, even if you had one last year you need to make it an annual event. Being proactive is the best way to maintain a healthy life.

5.)  Stay positive. It sounds simple, but if you try and keep a positive outlook on life you will find that you enjoy your work, family, and life in general a lot more.

6.)  Cut the calories back. This year instead of trying the next fad diet resolve to simply cut back your calorie intake.

7.)  Exercise daily. That doesn’t mean become a gym rat it means incorporate some kind of physical activity into your daily routine. It could be something as simple as going for a walk through the park every day, or going for daily bike rides.

8.)  Make “wellness” a verb. Don’t think of health and wellness as something to reach for, or something to achieve. Think of as the way you live your life.

9.)  Cut back the caffeine. Instead of drinking a pot of regular coffee every morning switch to a 50/50 coffee or caffeine free soft drinks.

10.)  Add a little “green” to your life. Mom really was right growing up, be sure to add fruits and vegetables to your meals every day.

These changes, for the most part, are easy to work into your daily life and maintain all year long.

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Bye Bye Bacne

bacneWith Mardi Gras and spring break fast approaching, you might be heading to a warmer climate where a shirt is optional attire. To prepare for this you might be putting in some extra hours at the gym, maybe going to a tanning salon, even waxing some not often seen parts of your body.
Before you go on your trip, put on a swim suit, or take your shirt off you might want to look over your shoulder to check out your back for any pimples, black heads, or white heads. You know “bacne”.

Back acne or “bacne” is not just a problem for the “tween” and teen crowd; many adults find that they too are suffering from a blemished back. A lot of people are dealing with this problem that was once thought of as a pubescent problem, but, they don’t know what causes their back(s) to break out. Sadly, there really isn’t a clear answer- no pun intended.

Dermatologist and doctors generally agree that acne ‘pops up’ during puberty because the sebaceous gland kicks on and starts to produce sebum. Sebum is a waxy or oily matter that lubricates your skin and hair. When the body over produces sebum it can clog up your pores and hair follicles attracting bacteria causing your skin to break out.

While we still don’t know why adult’s (whose sebaceous glands should have regulated itself) bodies break out. We do know some ways to treat your break outs once it happens. Below you will find some tips recommended to treat your unsightly back break outs:

* Shower daily and use an exfoliating body wash when you shower, by exfoliating daily you are removing dead skin and unclogging your pores. As we discussed earlier clogged pores attract bacteria and cause acne.  This is an easy, inexpensive way to treat your “bacne”.

* You can use salt scrubs or sugar scrubs on a weekly basis.  These scrubs act as an exfoliate, but shouldn’t be used every day. Exfoliating too much can cause your skin to become red, blotchy and irritated. A sugar scrub is a little softer to the skin than the salt scrub, if you have sensitive skin try the sugar scrub.

* Sometimes the most obvious is the most elusive- a face wash or scrub specifically designed to treat acne can be used on your back as well. Think about it, if it works on your face, why wouldn’t it work on your back?

*Because acne can be caused by your body producing too much sebum all the washing, face scrubs, and exfoliating might not help. If you have tried at home remedies you might want to call your doctor or dermatologist and ask for a prescription for a topical gel that uses something like Benzamycin or peroxide.
You might not want to start using one of these products right before you head to a sunny beach for spring break. They can make your skin more vulnerable to sun burn, so talk to your doctor and weigh your options before you start using a prescribed product.

Remember “bacne” is something that tweens, teens, and adults have to deal with. Be aware of what’s going on over your shoulder, make the necessary adjustments and you too will be able to shamelessly shed your shirt.

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