#HealthFix: Effective Ways To Boost Your Well-Being

Boost your Recall

Memory is a complex process. It involves acquiring, storing and recalling of information. You begin to lose brain cells, a few at a time, from your 20s. Ageing affects the way your brain stores information, making it harder for you to remember; your body too, makes less of the chemicals needed for your brain cells to work optimally. Stress, anxiety, illness, and certain medication can also play spoilsport. Try this to keep it jogging: Take up a new language, hobby, sport, or musical instrument to stimulate your brain. Cognitive behavioural therapy and brain games also help boost memory. Write a positive statement every night. Affirmative assertion is a great way to activate the subconscious mind. Writing down things is a good way to improve memory.

Lose to Gain

Here is a simple way to give yourself the mental kick-in-the-pants that will get you off the couch, and help you get back into healthy habits. Fire up motivation by making yourself an irresistible offer of a juicy reward—something you are actually willing to work for. An entire weekend at the spa, a shopping spree, or maybe even a new ‘toy’ like a flat-screen TV or whatever gets you going.

Not so Sweet

Craving for certain foods at times is not necessarily a bad thing, but a constant urge can mean that there is a problem—perhaps an imbalance in the body that needs to be corrected. Sugar craving is one of them. Energy slumps and sugar cravings during the afternoon point towards ups and downs in our blood-sugar levels. This happens when we rely mainly on sugary and starchy foods for our daily nutrition. Another reason for sugar cravings could be the presence of low levels of serotonin, the feel-good neurotransmitter. Sugar cravings need to be treated as an addiction, and managed gradually over time through diet and lifestyle changes. Here’s a fix: Sweeten your foods with a few dried fruits, instead of pure sugar. Fibre helps to slow down the release of glucose into the bloodstream too, so opt for whole fruits instead of juices.

Workout your Me-time

Treat exercise as ‘me’ time to make it more fun. If you lead a busy life—work or school, kids, household obligations—your exercise routine could become an excuse to spend some much-needed quality with yourself and perk up.

Nut with It

It’s no shell game—this tasty nut is proven to lower heart-disease risk. Pennsylvania State University researchers found that adults who got 20 per cent of their calories from pistachios (that’s about 1/2 cup for an 1,800-calorie diet) reduced LDL cholesterol by 12 per cent. You can sprinkle crushed pistachios on your salads. Refrigerate in an airtight container for them to remain fresh for up to a year.

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Collated from articles previously published in Prevention magazine.