OUR HEALTH IS OUR PRIORITY

“Health is a crown on a well man’s head, but no one appreciates it like a sick man”. – Egyptian Proverb.

In our hectic lives, we tend to neglect our health and well being. Many of us mention health as one of our priority in life but as ourselves again, how many hours a day we spend towards our priority or how many hours a week we really did something that contribute to our health generally? We tend to spend more and more of our times on work, and yes, our work until we limit our time for other activities. At the end of the day, when sickness pays a visit, we tend to blame solely to our work as a main cause for our sickness. But we tend to forget, we are the one who neglected the importance of being healthy. Work does contribute toward certain sickness especially when we deal with hazardous substances, manual handling and so forth. Now it’s time to start shifting our priorities or at least balance it.

REGULAR MEDICAL CHECK-UPS

It is recommended to go for health screening every year. Remember that it cost less (both financially and emotionally) as prevention is better than cure. However there are some self-checks which could be carried out at home such as blood glucose or blood pressure tests. Don’t ignore any unusual symptom that you have been experiencing.

THE IMPORTANCE OF EXERCISE

One who found no time for bodily exercise will soon find time for bodily injury. Exercise is always at all stages of life. There are few different type of exercise that we can do and we need to do a little of each. Stretching helps to keep you flexible while strengthening exercise will slow down age related muscle loss. Endurance activities are good for cardiovascular system and balancing exercises are important to prevent from falls and fractures as a result of them.

NUTRITION

As we age, our nutrition requirements change. Lack of certain nutrients may result in drop of stamina. Seek help from professionals if there are any supplements that you need (seek from doctor while doing medical check-ups). We are what we eat. Learn what type of food suitable for your health and food that you should avoid. Compensate the shortage vitamins and minerals inside your body by taking supplement to boost your health and general well being.

A MOMENT TO RELAX

There are many ways to get more out of every day – this is when you choose to spend your time doing what you want to do, not what you have to do. Take leisurely walks, read, meditate or whatever that makes you feel relaxed. Age is just a matter of numbers. Even when you are so busy with daily routine, don’t make it as a reason to take a good care of your health.

Don’t wait until it’s too late. Start to shift towards a healthy lifestyle. Remember, the best time to plant a fruit tree is 5 years ago but the better time to plant is today… Take care… J. L. Lai.