Women's Health Center A Woman’s Guide to Staying Healthy through the Holidays
(ARA) - The holidays are for celebrating faith, family and friends, but they can also be extremely taxing. To successfully navigate from Thanksgiving through the New Year, you have to maximize your time, health and energy. With some forethought you can avoid common pitfalls that can sap your energy and make for a less than joyous season.
Eating Right : Family recipes are part of our fondest holiday memories, so of course you’re going to splurge. But, you don’t have to abandon all your sensibilities. A healthy diet has benefits far beyond maintaining your figure.
* Energy and Mood: Overindulging in the wrong foods can cause blood sugar fluctuations, which lead to mood swings, fatigue and poor concentration. Try to integrate lean protein and healthy carbohydrates into your diet and avoid too much sugar at once.
* Sleeping Well: According to the Better Sleep Council, sleep is necessary to absorb the day's learning and reenergize the body. Maximize your restfulness by finishing eating 2 to 3 hours before bedtime and avoiding alcohol late at night, which can lead to fragmented sleep.
* Your Overall Health: Poor nutrition can lower your immunity to illness. The typical American diet is deficient in a variety of nutrients including calcium, iron, vitamin A, and vitamin C, and holiday eating can be even less balanced. The best way to get your vitamins is through food, but a daily supplement is advisable if your diet is lacking.
* Getting Active: One of the first things people sacrifice is their workout time. You may not be able to make your favorite step class, but that doesn’t mean you can’t exercise. Wear comfortable shoes and take every opportunity to park far away, walk up the escalator or double-time it up the stairs. Regular exercise does more than keep your heart healthy:
* Improve Concentration: Exercising speeds blood flow through the brain, helping to flush waste products that can cause a foggy feeling and improve deeper thinking by bringing extra nutrients to the brain.
* Deflect Stress: Physically active individuals have a less extreme physiological response to pressure. A chemical released in the brain during exercise is believed to help the body mend itself from the effects of stress, which can otherwise bring about depression, trouble sleeping or overeating.
* Ease Menstrual Cramps: Regular physical activity often reduces cramping by raising levels of beta endorphins, the chemical in the brain associated with pain relief.
Despite our best efforts, it’s inevitable that some of us will have to deal with health issues during the Holidays. Here’s the best way to tackle the most common assailants:
The Flu -- Each winter, 20 to 50 percent of the US population comes down with this highly contagious virus.
* If you can’t eat, try getting nourishment from soup. Electrolyte drinks are also good options. Liquids are especially important, as fevers cause the body to lose fluids.
* Over-the-counter medicines may help to relieve your symptoms. But, be aware that medicines that suppress fevers can prolong the course of the infection.
* Influenza makes the body more susceptible to other illnesses, so if your symptoms aren't clearing up or you get sick again right away, you may have a secondary infection. See your doctor for proper diagnosis and treatment.
Yeast Infections -- Although most women don’t discuss them, 75 percent are affected by them. Sugar and alcohol, abundant during the holidays, can help Candida yeast proliferate, triggering yeast infections.
* Most yeast infections can be treated by over-the-counter medicines. For example, Nature’s Cure makes unique 1-Day and 3-Day Yeast Infection Convenience Packs that come with both a vaginal treatment to relieve discomfort and all-natural homeopathic tablets to treat the infection internally at its source.
* If you can’t avoid the common triggers -- antibiotic usage, stress, poor diet and hormonal changes -- you may need to be more proactive. L. acidophilus probiotics, found in yogurt or supplements, keep your system in check competing with other organisms for glucose. Nature’s Cure Yeast Control Capsules combine both L. acidophilus and homeopathic medicine to stimulate your body’s natural defenses to maintain a healthy balance.
* See your doctor if the OTC treatment doesn’t work -- you may have mistaken a bacterial infection or some other ailment for a yeast infection.
Keep these healthy living strategies in mind and you’ll be better able to cope with all that comes your way. If you do become overwhelmed, try to reduce the expectations you’ve placed on yourself and simplify your tasks. Don’t lose sight of the true meaning of the holiday season and enjoy your blessings.
Courtesy of ARAcontent
 | Flu Season Information Heart Healthy Tips for Cold and Flu Season
(ARA) - According to the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, in the course of a year, Americans suffer one billion colds. With statistics like that, one might assume that most Americans know how to treat their cold and flu symptoms.
However, a new national survey commissioned by the makers of Coricidin (R) HBP, a line of cold and flu medications specifically formulated for people with high blood pressure, shows that almost half (45 percent) of Americans complain that the cold and flu aisle is by far the hardest place in a store to find the products they need. This confusion may lead to health trouble for some of the 72 million Americans who suffer from hypertension, since the use of decongestants may raise blood pressure.
Over-the-counter remedies can help relieve the symptoms of the common cold, but it’s important to read labels carefully. On average, most people (56 percent) say that they spend more than five minutes looking at the options in the cold and flu aisle before deciding which medication to buy. This might have something to do with the fact that many don’t know about the ingredients in their medications. Only one in eight (12 percent) Americans say they can easily explain the difference between an antihistamine and a decongestant, compared to the 52 percent who say they can articulate the difference between regular and diet soda.
While many people may be likely to ask a doctor or pharmacist for advice about over-the-counter cold or flu medications, they need to ask the right questions and make it known if they have high blood pressure.
The American Heart Association reminds people with hypertension to be aware that the use of decongestants may raise blood pressure. Unlike many other cold and flu medications, Coricidin HBP is the only cold brand specially made so it won’t raise your blood pressure because it does not contain a decongestant.
As we prepare for the upcoming cold and flu season, it’s important to equip your home and your family with tools for boosting your immune system. Lifestyle and diet decisions have an impact on a person’s overall health and their ability to fight off the cold and flu.
“Anyone preparing for or living through cold and flu season -- especially those with high blood pressure -- needs to make healthy lifestyle choices, including smart nutrition and physical activity routines,” says Rovenia Brock, Ph.D., nutritionist and author of the national best-seller, “Dr. Ro’s Ten Secrets To Livin’ Healthy”.
Dr. Ro recommends establishing a daily physical activity routine to help maintain a healthy heart. However, it’s critical to ease into an exercise program and consult a physician first. If you haven’t been physically active in a while, you can start off slow and work your way up to meeting physical activity recommendations. Intense physical activity, like shoveling snow, should be avoided if you have not been physically active lately.
Dr. Ro also counsels her patients to know their numbers. Having regular doctor’s appointments to monitor blood pressure will help you and your doctor monitor your hypertension program and make the necessary adjustments to keep it under control.
For more information, visit www.americanheart.org/hbp or the Coricidin HBP Web site at www.CoricidinHBP.com.
Courtesy of ARAcontent
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