Incorporating healthier habits into your lifestyle can potentially optimize your overall happiness, health and productivity. It's not always easy to do, especially ending negative habits such as smoking or overeating, but starting with small changes and gradually working up to bigger ones will increase your likelihood of success.
Healthy Eating
Many people struggle with developing healthy eating habits. Eating breakfast is a key factor in developing a healthy diet. The Mayo Clinic points out the numerous benefits of eating breakfast for both children and adults. Eating breakfast increases the chance that you'll consume more vitamins and minerals and less cholesterol, have increased concentration and productivity throughout the morning, and can help with weight control. Maintaining healthy eating habits throughout the day also involves making smart choices. The USAA Educational Foundation publication "Helping Children Develop Healthy Habits" encourages choosing fruits and vegetables over fried, packaged or processed food, whole grains over white or processed breads, and lean meats over meats high in fat content. These choices do not have to be made all of the time, but slowly incorporating some of these options into your diet can lead to a healthier diet over time.
Get Enough Sleep
The National Sleep Foundation (NSF) reports that more than 2/3 of older adults suffer from sleep problems. Most Americans do not get the required amount of sleep to function at an optimal level. The NSF recommends that most American adults get between seven and nine hours of sleep. They report that not getting enough sleep increases the likelihood of accidents both at work and on the road, and that those who suffer from even occasional sleeping problems are more likely to have higher levels of stress or feel less productive during the day.
Increase Physical Activity
In a 2005-06 study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 67 percent of non-institutionalized Americans over the age of 20 are overweight or obese. The benefits of getting enough exercise are numerous, and increasing your daily amount of physical activity is one of the healthiest habits to develop. The American Heart Association lists the benefits of getting enough physical activity, which includes a reduced risk of heart disease, weight control, prevention of bone loss, stress and tension relief and many others. The CDC recommends that the average adult under the age of 65 get at least 150 minutes of moderately intense aerobic activity or 75 minutes of vigorous exercise each week, combined with muscle-strengthening activities at least two days per week.
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