Holistic Wellness for Life North of 50

Archive for October, 2009

4 Tips To Improve Your Health

October 27th, 2009 |

Author: John

I just read an article with a few great tips on health and wellness I’d like to share. Here are some of the highlights that might interest you.

1. A big splash of non-fat milk turns your morning java into a protein drink, giving you more stamina and a bone boost. If your out try Starbucks Grande Skinny Cinnamon Dolce Latte, a 130-calorie treat with 12 grams of protein and 40 percent of your daily calcium.

2. Want less colds or flu this winter? Wash your hands for about 20 seconds with soap and water every time you cook, use the bathroom, blow your nose, handle garbage or touch a public surface. Temperature of the water is immaterial to cold prevention but luke warm water is better for the skin on your hands.

3. Eating, brushing your teeth or combing your hair with your non-dominant hand challenges your brain and helps it think faster.

4. Want to live a little longer or at least live better for the time you have? Don’t smoke and walk at a quick pace for 20 minutes 3 times a week.

Be well.

Reprinted from:

Health Magazine, November 2009

Prevention Magazine, November 2009

Technorati Tags: health and wellness, holistic health, men over 50, women over 50

Posted in health and wellness |

Tags: health and wellness, holistic health, men over 50, women over 50 |

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The Brain and Mind, What Do We Know?

October 26th, 2009 |

Author: John

More and more, scientists are finding out new things about the brain and the mind. Holistically, we have always known that the body and the brain, as a part of the body, carry around the spirit and support it. The mind is that process that allows the spirit to interact with the world as a whole. It seems fairly obvious, but only recently has science caught up with this way of thinking. We can see this in all aspects of our life and is most exemplified when something goes wrong with our body.

The brain was thought of as a lump of material that attained a certain size and stopped reproducing itself, could not repair itself and after a certain age it was a race to see which would go first - your brain or you would die. We also only use 10% of the brain. And of course, scientists believed once the brain died, so did the mind. Recent studies are starting to blow some of these time honored theories right out of the water.

Today, brain imaging during various activities, both mental and physical, are showing that we use a much larger portion of our brain than previously was thought. We now can see that all sections of the brain light up corresponding to the tested activity. Also, the brain does not stop growing or reproducing new cells as previously thought. Each time you begin a new activity sections of the brain are shown to grow and have more related activity. This has been shown for may activities, such as, juggling, learning a new language, playing a new game, physical exercise and a host of other things that require learning something new.

It was also thought that a damaged brain could not repair itself. What has now been found is that the brain can rewire itself, so to speak, allowing the person to perform an action, they had previously lost with another portion of the brain. Scientists have found the brain can actually re-route itself. And the brain does not necessarily have to die just because we get to old age. Studies, again, are showing that exercise, good diet and good friends and family can help keep a brain sharp until the day you die.

All this proves that you are the one that has the largest control over how your brain functions and how fulfilling your life is. Granted there are some diseases that can prove too debilitating, but even then a healthy lifestyle can minimize the effects of those diseases. So get up, get out and enjoy life.

Be well.

Related posts:

http://www.northof50.us/holistic-wellness/keeping-your-mind

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_90855.html

http://www.webmd.com/healthy-aging/news/20091016/stay-healthy-in-retirmenet-with-work?src=RSS_PUBLIC

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/09/090914172524.htm

Technorati Tags: brain health, holistic wellness, men over 50, mind health, women over 50

Posted in holistic wellness |

Tags: brain health, holistic wellness, men over 50, mind health, women over 50 |

30 Comments »

The Nook

October 22nd, 2009 |

Author: John

Typically, I focus my blog entries on health and wellness. However, today I came across several related articles, notably one from Mashable.com about the Barnes and Noble’s new e-reader, the Nook. This gives food for thought on how reading can enhance our overall health and wellness. It’s a well documented fact that keeping the mind active and engaged can increase or extend our brain cell’s life. So, let’s take a look at the Nook.

Some details about the Nook; 2 GB of storage on board (enough to hold about 1,500 eBooks), an SD slot for expanded storage up to 16 GB, and wireless capability. As for the wireless, with the wireless turned off, the battery will last a reported 10 days on a single charge, pretty good for a small battery. The OS will be Google’s amazing Android system. The device connects to the Barnes & Noble eBook store using a free 3G AT&T connection, but it does lack a web browser. The Nook will have an added feature, lacking in other eReaders — the ability to loan a book to a friend. The friend won’t even have to have a Nook — the LendMe feature can be used to loan a book to any device that will run the B&N eReader software, including Macs, PCs, BlackBerries and iPhones. The lending is limited to 2 weeks at a time, but nevertheless, this displays exceptional user-friendliness, which definitely out performs Amazon’s Kindle in this regard. It also supports the open ePub standard, again further undercutting Amazon’s proprietary content store. Unfortunately, in terms of available title selection, Barnes & Noble can’t quite compete with Amazon, for now. So, if you’re primarily in the market for obscure titles or authors, you might want to verify their availability in the Barnes & Noble store to make sure the content market behind this device lives up to your expectations.

Unlike the Kindle, the Nook has a Wi-Fi connection that customers will be able to use at Barnes & Noble’s more than 700 physical locations and 600 college stores in 50 states. The current version does not allow connection to Wi-Fi networks outside the stores, but will allow Nook owners to digitally browse complete titles while they’re in a Barnes & Noble store and read free content.

Pre-orders for the device are now available (a photo for your viewing pleasure is below), with an expected ship date in November. So, does the Nook pique your interest? Or one of the other gazillion eReaders that seem to be on market?

There are many uses and opportunities to implement the Nook in our daily lives. Besides the enjoyment of leisure reading, how about references and support data? Normally, when I need information about a certain subject I either go to the library or try to find it online. Although I have acquired a variety of books over the years, I still can’t carry them around in any quantity or easily find the exact reference I need at that exact moment. Especially when I’m away from home or writing articles for Holistic Wellness, I usually need to reference or lookup. In steps the Nook – convenient, compact and travel friendly. Having the ability to carry around 1500 books plus another 16 GB of written material could at times be certainly helpful, not to mention the ability to not pack or keep up with several books. Now, add the ability to lend a friend a helpful reference, your favorite book or a new article, this is definitely an added plus. What about the ability to carry multiple guide books while traveling without the “books”? I certainly wish I had it on our last trip. What a weight and space saver that would be! My hope here, now that one company is doing it, maybe – soon – we’ll be able to download books and magazines from the library just like regular books. What a thought . . . that future technology will help us, personally, with our health and wellness!