Healthy steps

Healthy steps. Health and fitness experts suggest the following tasks to take control of your health. Start by correcting any sleep habits that are depriving you of the nightly sleep you need. Next, reduce your daily stress to acceptable and healthy levels. Next, develop a consistent exercise regimen. Lastly, correct your diet with nutritious and balanced meals.
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Prescription drugs

Prescription drugs. Americans are taking more prescription drugs in the struggle to lower cholesterol, treat depression, reduce inflammation and ease other illnesses. According to U.S. government statistics, more than 45 percent of Americans take at least one prescription drug. One person in every six takes three or more prescription drugs.
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Athlete's Foot

Athlete's Foot. Following are suggestions from the American Podiatric Medical Association to help prevent athlete's foot: do not walk barefoot in public areas like pools or locker rooms; use talcum powder to keep feet dry; wear shoes that allow air to circulate; and wear thick, absorbent socks and change them at least daily.
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Squats

Squats. This exercise works the buttocks, hamstring and quads. Start by standing with feet shoulder width apart and arms straight out in front of you. Keeping your torso straight, slowly bend your knees until your buttocks touch or come close to the floor, hold for a second and return to the standing position. Do ten repetitions of this exercise for one set and work up as desired.
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Toe crunches

Toe crunches. This exercise works the abs and buttocks. Start by lying flat with your legs in the air and knees bent. Extend your left leg so that it is straight out, hold for two seconds, and return to the start position. Repeat for the right leg to complete one repetition of the toe crunch.
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Muscle mass

Muscle mass. As we reach age 30 and beyond our bodies naturally lose muscle mass. Less muscle mass means our bodies require fewer calories. A consistent muscle and strength-training program can offset the effects of a slowing metabolism. Try some weight bearing exercises two or three days a week. Work your entire body and challenge yourself with a bit more weight as you progress in your program.
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Health maintenance evaluation

Health maintenance evaluation. The health maintenance evaluation is replacing the annual physical at the doctor's office. A health maintenance evaluation includes identifying risk factors in one's personal and family health history; performing a focused exam; obtaining needed screening tests at the right intervals; and encouraging people to choose healthy lifestyles to maximize their health.
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Small weight loss

Small weight loss. Even small amounts of weight loss are beneficial. Small weight losses lead to big improvements in cardiovascular risk factors. Researchers estimate that for every 2.2 pounds lost, your total blood cholesterol goes down by 1 percent. Other studies have found that as little as a four percent reduction in weight reduced the risk of diabetes.
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Nine a day

Nine a day. The National Cancer Institute recommends nine servings of fruits and vegetables for African American men. This group suffers much higher rates of almost every type of cancer and they are more likely to have heart disease and high blood pressure. Researchers believe these disproportionate numbers can largely be preventable through diet and lifestyle choices.
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Super foods

Super foods. Dermatologist Dr. Nicholas Perricone is the author of three New York Times Best Sellers, including his most recent book "Dr. Perricone’s 7 Secrets to Beauty, Health and Longevity." Dr. Perricone has compiled a list of "super foods" that he says make you look better and younger. His top three super foods: Alaskan salmon, acai fruit and garlic.
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Top five

Top five. According to consumer market research organization Simons Research, the top five ailments among American adults are: backache, hypertension/high blood pressure, high cholesterol, arthritis, and being overweight.
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Family meals

Family meals. As published in a recent Time Magazine article, studies show that the more often families eat together, the less likely kids are to smoke, drink, do drugs, get depressed, develop eating disorders, and the more likely they are to do well in school, delay having sex, eat their vegetables, learn better vocabulary and know which fork to use.
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Sleep

Sleep. A consistent, good night of sleep offers several health benefits. Sleep helps organize and recover our memory, allows our bodies to repair neurons used during the day, strengthens our body's immune system, and provides proper physical and mental development through the release of growth hormones. For most adults, seven to eight hours of sleep a night is best.
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Cabbage soup

Cabbage soup. The cabbage soup diet is a radical weight loss program with a seven-day duration. The dieter may eat unlimited amounts of water and cabbage soup on each of the seven days, while permitting certain other foods. Although not nutritionally sound, proponents of the diet recommend it as a "jump start" to a diet or weight loss program.
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High fiber

High fiber. Fiber is good for digestion and also lowers the risk of heart disease, cancer and diabetes. Most people would benefit from increasing fiber in their diets to about 20 to 35 grams per day. The Food and Drug Administration defines the term "high fiber" as a food serving with five or more grams of fiber per serving.



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VO2 Max

VO2 Max. The volume of oxygen consumed while exercising at your maximum capacity is a measure of physical fitness. VO2 max is the maximum amount of oxygen in milliliters one can use in one minute per kilogram of body weight. Well-conditioned people have higher VO2 max values. The average VO2 max for male athletes is about 3.5 liters/minute and for female athletes it is about 2.7 liters/minute.
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Rx.

Rx. According to HRAdvice.com, about 15 percent of employer health care costs are attributable to prescription drug plans. Prescription drug costs are the fastest rising component of medical expenditures, accounting for the largest percentage of increase in health care spending over the past several years. Most of the increases in drug costs reflect increased consumption.
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Essential eight

Essential eight. The health and fitness editors at Best Life magazine recommend eight foods to eat every day in order to cover all your nutritional bases. The essential nutritional foods are: spinach, yogurt, tomatoes, carrots, blue berries, black beans, walnuts and oats.
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Eat for two

Eat for two. Carrying too much weight while pregnant increases the risk of complications for mother and baby, including birth defects, labor and delivery problems, and delivery of large babies. The Institute of Medicine suggests pregnant women with a normal body mass index gain 25 to 35 pounds, higher BMI women 15 pounds, and lower BMI women 40 pounds.
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Strength

Strength. Absolute strength is the maximum force a person can exert with his or her whole body, or part of the body, irrespective of body size or muscle size. It is essentially the maximum amount a person can lift in one repetition. Relative strength is the maximum force exerted in relation to a person's body weight or muscle size.
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Fifty percent after 50

Fifty percent after 50. Health and fitness authors Dr. Frederic J. Vagnini and Dave Bunnell suggest that you can eliminate 50% of injuries and illnesses in the last third of your life by adapting and sticking to a sound fitness plan. Their exercise guidelines include: build up your heart, lift weights, always stretch, and make no excuses.
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Freshman 15

Freshman 15. The "Freshmen 15" refers to the approximate fifteen pounds the average college student puts on during their freshman year. The reported causes of this infamous phenomenon are attributed to increased alcohol consumption, more fat and carb rich cafeteria food, and lack of sleep. No empirical research has been done to support this legend.
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MyPyramid.gov

MyPyramid.gov. The Food Guide Pyramid presents a way for people to understand how to eat healthy by selecting the appropriate amounts among the five food groups. Through the USDA's MyPyramid website, people can get personalized recommendations about the mix of foods they need to eat and how much they should be eating. Learn more at MyPyramid.gov.
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The buddy system

The buddy system. Dieting or working out with a buddy may help you achieve your health and fitness goals faster. A recent Brown University study found that those who had a successful diet partner dropped twice as many pounds after a year of serious weight loss effort than those who dieted on their own.
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Obesity may be contagious

Obesity may be contagious. A recent Harvard Medical School study found that obesity might be contagious among friends, siblings and spouses. Researchers found that if someone’s friend is obese, that person’s chances of becoming obese increase by more than half. People with obese siblings were themselves 40% more likely to grow obese, while people with obese spouses were 37% more likely to.
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Antioxidants

Antioxidants. Antioxidants are molecules that slow or prevent the oxidation of other molecules. In the form of vitamins, minerals and enzymes, they are believed to play a role in preventing such chronic diseases as cancer, heart disease, stroke, Alzheimer's disease and Rheumatoid arthritis. Antioxidants are found in foods containing Vitamin E, Vitamin C, beta-carotene and selenium.
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J. O. De La Mettrie

"The body of man is a machine which winds its own springs." - J. O. De La Mettrie.
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February

February. Freshly picked fruits and vegetables provide more nutrients and more flavor than canned or stored fruits and vegetables, and usually cost less as well. Try adding one or more of the following fruits or vegetables that are ripe and at their natural peak during the month of February: grapefruits, radishes and red potatoes.
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