A better lifestyle is one of the new resolutions that come with the beginning of a new decade. Here are 20 useful health suggestions to get you started on the road to a healthy lifestyle in 2020.
1. Eat a healthy diet
Consume a variety of foods, such as fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts, and whole grains. At least five pieces (400g) of fruit and vegetables should be consumed each day by adults. By always including vegetables in your meals, snacking on fresh fruit and vegetables, eating a variety of fruits and vegetables, and eating them in season, you can increase the number of fruits and vegetables you consume. You can lower your chance of developing non-communicable diseases (NCDs), such as diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and cancer, by consuming a nutritious diet.
2. Consume less salt and sugar
Filipinos have twice the recommended sodium intake, which increases their risk of high blood pressure and, ultimately, heart disease and stroke. Salt is the main source of sodium for most individuals. Limit your daily salt consumption to 5g, or roughly 1 teaspoon. To make this easier, choose low-sodium foods and minimize your use of salt, soy sauce, fish sauce, and other high-sodium condiments when making meals. You should also remove salt from the dinner table and avoid salty snacks.
On the other hand, consuming excessive amounts of sugars increases the risk of tooth decay and unhealthy weight gain. In both adults and children, the intake of free sugars should be reduced to less than 10% of total energy intake. This is equivalent to 50g or about 12 teaspoons for an adult. WHO recommends consuming less than 5% of total energy intake for additional health benefits? You can reduce your sugar intake by limiting the consumption of sugary snacks, candies, and sugar-sweetened beverages.
3. Reduce intake of harmful fats
Less than 30% of your entire calorie consumption should come from fats. By doing this, NCDs and unhealthful weight increase will be reduced. Although there are many different kinds of fats, unsaturated fats are preferred to trans- and saturated fats. WHO advises cutting down on saturated fats to less than 10% of total energy consumption, cutting back on trans fats to less than 1% of total energy intake, and switching to unsaturated fats to replace both saturated and trans fats?
Saturated fats are found in fatty meat, butter, palm and coconut oil, cream, cheese, ghee, and lard. Trans-fats are found in baked and fried foods, as well as pre-packaged snacks and foods like frozen pizza, cookies, biscuits, and cooking oils and spreads. The healthier unsaturated fats are found in fish, avocado, nuts, and sunflower, soybean, canola, and olive oils.
4. Avoid harmful use of alcohol
There is no safe amount of alcohol consumption. Alcohol consumption can cause serious health issues like mental and behavioral disorders, including alcoholism, major NCDs like liver cirrhosis, some cancers, and heart diseases, as well as injuries brought on by violence and traffic accidents.
5. Check your blood pressure regularly
High blood pressure, also known as hypertension, is dubbed a “silent killer.” This is due to the fact that many people with hypertension might not be aware of the issue since it might not show any symptoms. Uncontrolled hypertension can cause diseases to the heart, brain, kidneys, and other organs. So that you are aware of your numbers, have your blood pressure checked frequently by a health professional. Consult a health professional for advice if your blood pressure is high. This is crucial for the management and prevention of hypertension.
6. Be active
Any skeletal muscle-driven movement that involves an energy cost is considered to be engaging in physical activity. Exercise and other activities carried out while working, playing, doing chores around the house, traveling, and partaking in leisure activities are included in this. Age-related requirements for physical activity vary, but adults between the ages of 18 and 64 should engage in at least 150 minutes per week of moderate-intensity exercise. For additional health advantages, up the amount of moderate-intensity exercise to 300 minutes per week.
7. Don’t smoke
NCDs like heart disease, stroke, and lung disease is brought on by tobacco use. Nonsmokers who are exposed to secondhand smoke from smokers also die from tobacco use. Around 15.9 million adult Filipinos smoke tobacco today, but 7 out of 10 smokers are either interested in quitting or have plans to do so.
It’s not too late to stop smoking if you currently do so. Once you do, your health will improve both now and in the future. It’s great that you don’t smoke! Don’t start smoking and defend your right to breathe air free of tobacco smoke.
8. Get tested
Knowing your health status, especially with regard to HIV, hepatitis B, sexually transmitted diseases (STIs), and tuberculosis, requires getting tested (TB). These illnesses can cause major consequences and even death if left untreated. Knowing your status allows you to take appropriate action to either continue preventing these diseases or, if you find out you are positive, to receive the necessary care and treatment. Wherever you feel most at ease, visit a public or private health center to get examined.
9. Get vaccinated
One of the best methods for disease prevention is vaccination. The natural defenses of your body are strengthened by vaccinations against illnesses including polio, rabies, rubella, tetanus, typhoid, typhoid fever, cholera, diphtheria, hepatitis B, influenza, measles, mumps, pneumonia, and yellow fever.
In the Philippines, as part of the Department of Health’s regular immunization program, free vaccines are given to children who are 1 year old and younger. Ask your doctor if you should verify your immunization status or get yourself vaccinated if you are an adult or adolescent.
10. Practice safe sex
For the sake of your general health and wellbeing, it’s crucial to take care of your sexual health. To avoid contracting HIV and other STDs like gonorrhea and syphilis, practice safe sex. Pre-exposure prophylaxis (Prep), which protects against HIV, and condoms, which protect against HIV and other STIs are both preventive strategies that are readily available.
11. Cover your mouth when coughing or sneezing
The air can spread illnesses like the flu, pneumonia, and tuberculosis. Infectious agents can spread to others through airborne droplets when a sick person coughs or sneezes. Make sure you have covered your mouth with a face mask or used a tissue before disposing of it gently when you start to cough or sneeze. When you cough or sneeze without a tissue nearby, try to cover as much of your mouth with the crook (or inside) of your elbow.
12. Prevent mosquito bites
One of the deadliest critters in the world is the mosquito. Mosquito-transmitted illnesses like dengue, chikungunya, malaria, and lymphatic filariasis continue to plague Filipinos. Simple precautions can be taken to safeguard you and your loved ones from illnesses spread by mosquitoes. Ask your doctor if you need to get vaccinated against diseases like Japanese encephalitis and yellow fever, or if you need to take antimalarial medications if you’re going to a place where there are known mosquito-borne illnesses. Use bug repellent and dress in light-colored, long-sleeved shirts and slacks. Use window and door screens, bed nets, and weekly housecleaning to eliminate mosquito breeding grounds at home.
13. Drink only safe water
Drinking contaminated water puts one at risk for developing water-borne illnesses such cholera, diarrhea, hepatitis A, typhoid, and polio. Around the world, at least 2 billion people consume water that has been tainted with faces. Verify the safety of the water you’re consuming by contacting your water concessionaire and water refilling station. Boil the water for at least one minute if you are unsure about the source in a situation. This will eliminate hazardous aquatic organisms. Before drinking, let it cool naturally.
14. Follow traffic laws
Road crashes claim over one million lives around the world and millions more are injured. Road traffic injuries are preventable through a variety of measures implemented by the government such as strong legislation and enforcement, safer infrastructure and vehicle standards, and improved post-crash care. You yourself can also prevent road crashes by ensuring that you follow traffic laws such as using the seatbelt for adults and child restraint for your kids, wearing a helmet when riding a motorcycle or bicycle, not drinking and driving, and not using your mobile phone while driving.
15. Breastfeed babies from 0 to 2 years and beyond
The greatest way to provide babies and infants the right diet is to breastfeed them. Within an hour of giving birth, moms should start nursing, according to WHO. For a baby to grow up healthy, breastfeeding is essential for the first six months. It is advised to continue nursing for up to two years and beyond. Breastfeeding is healthy for kids, but it’s also good for moms since it lowers the risk of postpartum depression, type II diabetes, and breast and ovarian cancer.
16. Talk to someone you trust if you’re feeling down
Over 260 million individuals around the world suffer from depression, making it a widespread disorder. Depression can show up in many different ways, but it often leaves you feeling worthless or hopeless, thinking a lot of unfavorable thoughts, or experiencing excruciating pain. Please keep in mind that you are not alone if you are going through this. Discuss your feelings with a trusted person, such as a member of your family, a friend, a work colleague, or mental health professional. Call the National Center for Mental Health hotline at 0917-899-USAP if you think you might hurt yourself (8727).
17. Take antibiotics only as prescribed
One of the major concerns to public health in our generation is antibiotic resistance. Bacterial infections become more difficult to treat when antibiotic effectiveness declines, which raises healthcare expenditures, lengthens hospital stays and increases mortality. Due to abuse and excessive use in both people and animals, antibiotics are losing their effectiveness. Make sure to only take antibiotics on a doctor’s prescription if necessary. Additionally, follow the suggested treatment schedule. Don’t ever give out antibiotics.
18. Clean your hands properly
Everyone should practice good hand hygiene, not only healthcare professionals. The spread of contagious diseases can be stopped by using clean hands. When your hands are obviously dirty, you should wash them by hand with soap and water or use an alcohol-based hand scrub.
19. Prepare your food correctly
More than 200 ailments, ranging from cancer to diarrhea, are brought on by contaminated food that contains dangerous bacteria, viruses, parasites, or chemical chemicals. To make sure the food you’re buying at the market or supermarket is safe to consume, look at the labels or the real produce. Follow the Five Keys to Safer Food if you are preparing food: Maintain cleanliness, separate raw from cooked food, cook thoroughly, maintain food at safe temperatures, and utilize safe raw materials and water.
20. Have regular check-ups
Health issues can be discovered early on with regular checkups. When your chances of receiving treatment and a cure are improved, health professionals can assist in identifying and diagnosing health conditions. Visit the medical Centre that is most convenient for you to learn more about the health services, examinations, and treatments that are offered there.
