Unhealthy habits that age you…
If you don’t like what you see in the mirror and you seem to be aging faster than your years it’s time to take stock and evaluate your daily habits so you can begin to reverse this accelerated unhealthy trend.
Modern science has proven that lifestyle habits turn into lifestyle diseases. Smoking and obesity are two detrimental lifestyle habits that are obvious. But, there are less obvious factors that are just as destructive and accelerate the aging process shortening lifespans and stealing years away.
Stress and Anxiety: Stress is a factor of life. We cannot escape stress but we can learn to handle it better by ridding ourselves of worthless worry. Worrying makes us anxious and mentally exhausted. It messes with our hormones and causes a continual release of cortisol, adrenaline and norepinephrine. This constant barrage of hormones literally wears us out, lowers our immune system, raises our blood pressure, interferes with sleep and disturbs our moods. The best way to handle stress when it hits is to take a deep breath…a few of them and shift your perspective to the “big picture.” Get your mind off of it by taking a nice long walk or a visit to the gym. Try meditation and yoga to increase your ability to call forth “peace” when everything around you screams chaos.
Sedentary lifestyle: Being a couch potato “remote lover” does nothing to increase your longevity…in fact, it does a good job of stealing away your healthy years. Regular, consistent, challenging exercise not only helps to keep the pounds off, but it protects our muscle mass and bone density. Even a simple walk has the power to reduce inflammation, lower blood pressure, increase muscle tone and reduce stress. Proper exercise is the key to turning back the body clock so don’t view exercise as a “chore” but rather as a “gift” that keeps you young.
Sugar/Sweet Tooth: It’s ok to honor your sweet tooth on occasion but too much of a sweet tooth is not a good thing. “Sugar” is not at all “sweet” to your body…it is damaging. According to San Diego, California board certified dermatologist, Susan Stuart, MD, “internally sugar molecules attach themselves to protein fibers in each of our cells. This damaging process known as glycation can result in a loss of radiance, loss of tone, puffiness and dark circles under the eyes, and an increase in lines and wrinkles. A sugar packed diet will not only show up on your waistline, but make your skin appear dull and wrinkled. If you truly want to retain your youthful “glow” then pass on dessert and leave the sugar on the table.
Alcohol: Although no one needs to “swear off” drinking entirely, drinking less is key to getting your liver in shape and keeping it from having to work so hard to flush out toxins and impurities from your body. Truth is, alcohol is a natural diuretic, meaning the more you drink the more dehydrated you become. Alcohol is no friend to your fine lines and wrinkles either…it zaps the natural moisture from your skin. Drinking alcohol excessively can trigger rosacea outbreaks as well as exacerbating acne, fine lines and wrinkles all of which are going to age you and make you look older than you are.
Lack of quality Sleep time: Most people have no idea how important it is to get a good night’s sleep. Those who don’t, experience negative effects to their health. The immune system is impaired, focus and clarity are decreased as the mind becomes fuzzy and even memory is effected in a negative way. The ideal sleep time is between 7-9 hours nightly but make sure you do not over-sleep as this can cause unwanted wrinkles and sleep lines. “Get your beauty sleep” has more merit to it than previously believed.
You may not be able to “stop the clock” entirely, but you can still feel and look younger than your years if you pay attention to your lifestyle habits and only choose those that contribute to lengthening your years rather than robbing them.
The rewards for being fit and healthy each and every hour of the day is that you get to enjoy the freedoms of a healthy body that won’t hold you back simply because you are getting older.
Everything you need to know to slow down and even reversing the aging clock can be found in my anti-aging library of help: “Reclaim Your Longevity.”
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