Buffy's Salon

Do one thing for nature...

Woman talking to singing bird 

An article in National Trust magazine (which unfortunately I can't find online) urges us to go back to nature for the good of our health, both physical and mental.

"Just watch children playing outdoors on logs and in streams and you can see that they are not doing it to promote their health but because they love it." the article states.  In other words humans, in their most unspoilt state, have an affinity with nature

"The natural environment has a powerful effect on us to become less stressed.  In fact the changes in brain waves can be measured, showing an increase in alpha waves that indicate more calm.  Children become less hyperactive, can concentrate better and play more independently with greater balance.  They develop a lifelong ability to connect with nature, but only if they are allowed to play freely in streams and woods before the age of 12.  After this the effect rapidly diminishes."

The good news is that the concept of the Natural Health Service is being developed in England and Scotland to supplement care provided by the NHS. 

In the meantime there is plenty we can do as individuals.  BBC Breathing Places encourages everyone to do one thing for nature.  My favourites include:

1. Wake up to bird song
   

2. Provide water for birds

3. Feed hedgehogs and other small mammals

4. Collect rainwater

5. Give bats a place to roost by putting up a bat box

6. Build a pond

7. Turn your household waste into compost

8. Make your cat wildlife friendly

The 4 Rules to Follow for Good Health

 
Be in Good Health

A recent Europe-wide study found that we can cut the risk of common and life-threatening illneses such as cancer, diabetes or heart disease by 78% by following just four key lifestyle rules.  Yes, they are common sense, so why are most of us failing to do some or all of them?

In order of importance they are:

1. Maintain a healthy weight: avoid obesity (I have always assumed that smoking does more damage over long periods than being overweight, but evidently not.)
   

2. Do not smoke

3. Take moderate exercise (three-and-a-half hours a week, a daily walk being ideal).  Note there is no mention of extreme cardiac exercise. 

4. Have a healthy diet (a little meat and a lot of vegetables and wholegrains).  I think this is the hardest to do in the Western world because it's just not the way we're conditioned to eat.

I wonder how much we would save in healthcare and drugs if we all followed these four simple rules?

Immune System Don'ts

 

Keeping our body (and those of our family) healthy is one of our key responsibilities and yet it is one which, in this modern age of drugs, surgery and medical experts, is most readily shirked.

Doctors will talk of patients who come to them with chronic complaints that can be cured merely with a change of lifestyle.  The patient either looks at them aghast or pretends they will make the changes and then goes somewhere else.  They want a quick cure (probably to do with drugs) which will enable them to continue in the same unhealthy lifestyle without feeling the natural consequences.

No one will deny there is a place for drugs and surgery, and that certain diseases of the body are genetic or just bad luck.  However, current research suggests that the role of genetics in any disease is no more than 50% at most.  In other words, two people may have a predisposition towards a specific illness, but only one develops it because of the environmental factors in each case.  (BTW: that environment includes development whilst still in the uterus.)

A lot of research has gone into how we can have a strong immune system.  Here is a list of things that have been found to cause the most damage:

1. Smoking - no surprises here, with one out of every five deaths in America being related to smoking.  If you quit before you are 40 you will add 5 years to your life.  (Allen Carr's Easyway seems particularly successful.) 

2. Exposure to toxic chemicals - buy organic food where possible or grow your own.  Choose cleaners and other household goods with great care.  Eartheasy have good ideas for non toxic cleaning materials and other ways to live a chemical free life.

3. Sleep deprivation - study after study shows that lack of sleep cripples your immune system as well as increases your risk of heart disease, hormonal problems and early aging.

4. Constant stress - chronic stress lowers your ability to produce antibodies and depletes your white blood cells, leaving you open to all sorts of infections and cancer cells.  Stress can be caused by your attitude to life, a stressful lifestyle or by life events.

5. A negative outlook - in one study cancer patients who completed a course designed to make them more optimistic were found to have stronger immune systems than those who maintained a bleak outlook.  Clearly it's important for our health to remain cheerful.

6. A sedentary lifestyle - one study found that the inactive took twice as many days off sick as those who went for a regular walk.  Moderate exercise is the key, and this is a lifestyle choice: for example, walking instead of taking the car, going up the stairs instead of taking the lift etc.  (NB: moderate exercise has also been found to help with PMS.)

7. Social isolation - studies have shown that the lonely get sick more often, are more anxious and die younger.  Human touch and interaction are very important.  Contact that is not physical (e.g. email or over the internet) is not good enough.  It is important to have warm family relations, strong bonds with work colleagues or close friends that we see on a regular basis.  Studies have also shown that getting out of the house and into the community is important: those who attend cultural events, sporting events or worship regularly at church live longer than the hermits amongst us.  (Although relationships with those who make you feel bad or cause stress do more harm than good.)

8. Junk food - junk food is high on fat, sugar and salt, all of which, in excess, are damaging to your health and immunity.  Also, your body needs vitamins and minerals it doesn't get from burgers and french fries.

9. Excessive alcohol - the jury is out on whether alcohol in moderation (e.g. a glass of wine a day) can improve your health, but without doubt drinking to excess greatly increases the chance of serious infections and cancer, as well as a long list of other health problems.  At most, women should stick to no more than 2 units a day and men to 3 units.  (A unit is approx a small glass of wine or half a pint of lager.)

10. Overusing antibiotics - without doubt antibiotics saved millions of lives in the twentieth century.  Now, however, we are finding bacteria that has become resistant because we have over-used the miracle drug.  If you use antibiotics too frequently, you will become more resistant to them, and your body more open to infection.  Only take antibiotics for bacterial infections, never for a virus.  (The quickest cure for most virus infections is plenty of rest.)  Don't use them to prevent infection.  Limit antibacterial soap and cleaning products in your home.  Eat organic meat to avoid ingesting the antibiotics that are often used as a matter of course on farm animals.

11. Poor hygiene - if you don't wash your hands after visiting the toilet, or before preparing or eating food, after changing a baby's nappy or stroking animals you will greatly increase your chance of succumbing to that virus or bacteria in the first place. 

Recommended reading: many of these tips can be found in an excellent book called The Immune Advantage.

April's Challenge

Spa Setting III

Spring is finally here, and all that extra light shines into the dark corners of our winter lives, providing an excellent opportunity to consider those areas that could do with a clean out. 

The challenge is to read through the bullet points and pick one area where you can make a positive change.

Detox your body

• Start the day by drinking half a lemon squeezed into warm water.
• Review your diet - do you need to cut down on sugar, coffee, processed food, red meat or alcohol?
• Try dry skin brushing before your shower.
• Have a pedicure - it's time for your feet to emerge from their winter hibernation.
• Walk outside for 10-15 minutes five days a week to get some fresh air and soak up the light
• Drink 2 pints of water throughout the day, on top of your regular drinks.
• Do some simple stretching exercises every day.

Detox your home

• Open the windows and let some fresh air in (including at nighttime).
• Start taking your shoes off indoors.
• Throw out one chemical cleaner in your home and replace it with a more natural, traditional cleaner.
• Wash your bed linen on hot to kill of dust mites, then vacuum your mattress.
• Replace chemical air fresheners with aromatherapy oils, scented candles and fresh flowers.

Detox your mind & emotions

• Let go of any negative emotions you're holding onto; the Bible tells us "fear not", "forgive as the Lord forgave you", "do not let the sun go down whilst you are still angry", and "do not be anxious about anything".  How many of us can honestly say our minds are tranquil and trusting?

 

The Importance of Sleep

The Sleeping Beauty, 1870-90

The moral of much sleep research is startlingly simple. Your mother was right: you’ll get sick, become fat, and won’t work as well if you don’t get a good night’s sleep. So make time for rest and recovery.  From Deep Into Sleep article (see link below).

Having enough sleep is vital for healthy functioning throughout the day.  Whilst everyone can expect the odd bad night, to consistently try to manage without enough sleep is very bad for you.  Here are some things I have discovered about sleep:

• People now get less sleep than they did 100 years ago (about one hour a night less).
• This includes many children and teenagers (and they both need more than adults) and this is linked to the rise of hyperactivity and bad behaviour in youngsters.
• One in five motorway accidents are caused by tiredness.
• Following a poor night's sleep both concentration and attention spans slip.
• Experiments have found that sleep-deprived individuals fail to make rational judgments, particularly when they are under pressure. Did you know that disasters such as the one at Chernobyl have been linked to people being sleep deprived?
• Lack of sleep has been found to play a causal role in a number of diseases including diabetes and high blood pressure and has been proved to lower the immune system.
• Lack of sleep increases obesity because the body wants to eats more to make up for lack of energy.
• Experiments by Dr Dement found that virtually everyone carries around a large sleep debt.  You know you have sleep debt if you feel tired in the early afternoon, because at that time the hormones that keep you alert are at their lowest.
• The same experiments have found that the average person needs eight and a quarter hours sleep a night.  So every time you skimp on this your sleep debt increases.  Ergo, in order to reduce your sleep debt you have to sleep more than eight and a quarter hours.

How are you doing?  Assess your sleep health by doing the sleep profiler at the BBC website.

Read more about the importance of sleep.

Holiday Heaven all year round

Heavenly Holiday

For most of us the chance to take a break away from our normal life (preferably involving travel to somewhere with good weather and where someone else is responsible for cooking, cleaning and washing up) is the highlight of our year. 

As you know, I was lucky enough to travel round France for over two weeks (more photographs to follow) but you don't have to leave your own country to experience the delights of a holiday.  For many people the ideal holiday will be long country walks, for others lazing on the beach, or investigating a different culture with all its strange sights, sounds and history.  Another group love adventures and extreme sports.  The ultimate aim is to feel refreshed on our return to "home sweet home".  The danger is that two days after our return, we start to feel like we were never away!  This could be called the "late summer blues", since this is when we realise we have another year to wait for our next holiday, plus the days are getting noticeably shorter, wetter and colder. 

So, I've put together a plan to ensure that my feeling of wellbeing will last well into the autumn, by focusing on what we do on holiday that's so different to our daily lives and promising myself I'll find ways to keep on reaping the benefits.

1. Spending more time outdoors.  It's easy to stay shut in our human-made sterile environment, but we do need that contact with nature that a holiday so often provides.  It may not be warm enough for sunbathing but country walks are possible all year round and so is bringing flowers into the home.
2. Generally we sleep more on holiday because of the chance to sleep-in in the mornings or take siestas.  Most of the time in our daily lives we are sleep deprived, which affects both our performance and our health.  I'm going to make it a priority to go to bed at a good time and make sure I am in a relaxed state, rather than rushing around doing last minute chores or watching programmes that make my mind and emotions race.  Soothing books are the key, and maybe a soak in lavender scented bath.  And when possible I'm going to grab a short nap.
3. Most of us pack in more sunshine in our two weeks of holiday than the rest of the year put together.  (Well Brits do anyway!)  Although it's dangerous to burn, a certain amount of sunlight is important because it provides us with Vitamin D.  It doesn't have to be hot outside to benefit.  A gentle 20 minute walk five-times-a-week outside in all weather conditions will suffice.  This also means getting some exercise, rather than returning to the sedentary pre-holiday lifestyle.  (See my post on When your body gets the blues.)
4. One of the most refreshing things about holidays is the opportunity it gives us to experience doing things differently.  This can be anything from just having a different personal routine to being in a foreign country with exotic food or cultural and social differences.  We feel inspired to try new things as a result, even if it's just a new recipe.  Once home it's easy to get back into the same routine, and not make the effort to break out of our comfort zone.  When I see something new or interesting happening or starting up in my local area, maybe I should give it a try.  I probably would if I was on holiday. 
5. You always have more time on your hands on holiday.  If you're a reader you get through more books, or you spend longer over a meal just talking to people; you don't feel the same pressure to be "on the go" all the time, achieving the next task.  I'm going to try to go more slowly, to savour the blessing of everyday life and take time out to be spontaneous, to listen to that still small voice.  The sabbath day is our chance to recapture this restful time.

Your body is a Temple - Resources

Walk Slowly, Live Wildly talks about looking after our Temple - I do believe that our bodies are the most precious gifts and we must take care of them.  It's incredible how much abuse the human body can take and still function, but we must take responsibility to treat them with the respect they deserve.

The top ten ways to reduce the harm that we do to our bodies, and specifically our immune system, as laid out in The Immune Advantage are:

1. Stop smoking and avoid second-hand smoke.
2. Limit exposure to chemicals by using chemical-free beauty and household products and eating organic food, and of course not using recreational drugs or drinking to excess.
3. Make getting enough sleep a priority, it's too easy to sacrifice sleep in order to get more done but you're just asking to get an illness.  If you struggle to wake up every morning or fall asleep whilst watching TV you're not getting enough sleep.  The Sparrow's Nest talks about how we can enable sweet dreams.
4. Avoid stress.  I know, easier said than done.  Some stress is inevitable but living a life of endless stress will result in damage to your health.  If you feel there is too much tension in your life keep a diary for a couple of weeks and note down how and when you became stressed.  You'll probably find a pattern emerging, such as taking on more than you can handle or not doing enough pre-planning.
5. Be optimistic and enjoy life.  Don't allow your thoughts to turn to doom and gloom. (See my posts on A Cheerful Mind.)
6. Commit to regular light-to-moderate exercise.
7. Avoid social isolation by keeping in touch with family and friends, the community, or your local church.  Even pets help.
8. Avoid junk and over processed food, especially refined sugar.  Eat at least five helpings of fresh fruit and vegetables every day.
9. Don't take anti-biotics unless you really need them.  Never take them for a viral infection.
10. Have lots of fun and laughter in your life!  Laughter actually decreases stress hormones and increases certain immune cells.  Very importantly, don't take yourself too seriously.

If you or a loved one or friend is facing a serious illness you can see practical and caring tips for coping at The Happiness Project.

When your body gets the blues

What are the body blues?  They can be defined as any combination of the following symptoms:

• PMS
• problems with sleeping
• lack of energy
• cramps
• breast tenderness
• over-eating
• mild anxiety or depression
• baby blues
• suffering from S.A.D.
• irritability and over-sensitivity

Although men can get the body blues the syndrome is more common among women, especially women over 35.  The cause (in case you haven't worked this out already) is mostly hormonal; a combination of lower levels of serotonin in women than men and fluctuating oestrogen production.

Many women (and men) have resorted to taking some form of drugs or just accepting that they have to live life like this.  However the LEVITY programme has come up with an entirely natural solution which they successfully trialled with 112 women with mild depression between the ages of 19 to 78.  (You can read full details of the trial here.)  The test involved only three activities, two of which could be combined in one.  They were:

• more exposure to natural light (not necessarily direct sunlight)
• moderate exercise for 20 minutes, five days out of seven
• taking 6 vitamins and minerals daily

The first two can be combined into a daily walk outside.  Further details, including the list of supplements can be found on the Body Blues website or you can buy the book.

I wanted to bring this to your attention because I am all in support of natural means of improving our health and wellbeing.  Although in many ways our lives are very comfortable now (shelter, heating, cosy bed, hot water, home entertainment etc) we are still not as emotionally well-adjusted or as healthy as we could be.  It is so easy to lead a life that revolves around being indoors at home or in the office, particularly when the weather is not good.  And whose diet is so perfect they get a full complement of all the vitamins and minerals they need every day?  Lastly, we do tend to have too much of a sedentary lifestyle now, and those of us who do take exercise often do something punishing, when a gentle walk might be more what our bodies (especially if we are female) are built for and need. 

If you think you may have the body blues I would direct you to this quiz.

Longevity Quiz

Despite the slightly ghoulish picture for this quiz (OK, I also changed the heading!) I think it is worth doing because it highlights from the answers you give where you could use some improvement if you want to improve your longevity.  It also looks at physical, environmental and mental factors.  For example, I need to cut down on alcohol intake (no more than three drinks a week) and do more exercise.  Or even some exercise would be good.

You Will Live until Age 88

Congratulations! You take good care of yourself. You're poised to live a long, healthy life.

What Age Will You Die?

Napping Tip

If you sometimes suffer from insomnia or for some other reason do not find it easy to get your 8 hours' sleep then the latest research suggests that the answer is a short daytime nap of 15-20 minutes  You should have no more than 40 minutes sleep or you'll wake up feeling very groggy as your body will have switched into deep sleep mode, expecting several hours sleep.  Also if you sleep too long it might interfere with your ability to fall asleep that evening. 

If you cannot sleep during the day then a period of quiet contemplation is the next best thing.  Your energy will be totally recharged, even though the period of time is relatively short.  Various studies have found physical and cognitive benefits for people who take cat naps.

The ideal time of day for a nap is early afternoon when your alerting hormones are low.  Increase your chances of relaxing totally and dropping off into a light sleep by making sure you are comfortable and neither too hot nor too cold.  This may mean changing into pajamas and getting into bed with a hot water bottle but the extra effort will be worth it.  Of course, in the summer you may be able to drift off outside in the sunshine.

PS: Talking about catnapping this website gave me a chuckle: luxury furniture for your cats and dogs.

Photo courtesy of inmagine