Managing Holiday Stress

This may be the most wonderful time of the year, but it can also be the most stressful time of the year. There is a list of things that might be raising your blood pressure during the holidays from commuting in the snow, to dealing with extended family, or the financial weight of buying Christmas gifts.

Whether you are dealing with one stressor or a whole variety of them, having a plan and practicing techniques for stress management can help you enjoy the holidays more than ever.

Tips for Managing Holiday Stress

1.       Simplify. The holidays don’t have to be extravagant or perfect to be wonderful. Pick one or two traditions that you want to hold on to and be flexible with the rest. Put your focus on spending time with those you love rather than decorating every inch of the house.

2.       Stick to a budget. Whether it’s for holiday gifts or the Christmas feast, make a shopping list and a budget and stick to it! When you’ve determined ahead of time how much you’re comfortable with spending, you’re less likely to feel those shooting pains at the cash register.

3.       Ask for help and learn to say no. One person just can’t do it all. If you’re feeling overwhelmed, ask your friends to each bring a side dish to the meal, or split shopping duties with your spouse. Realize that friends and family will understand if you can’t make it to every event.

4.       Practice relaxation techniques. When you can feel your heart racing and your head pounding, take a few minutes to relax. Go to a dark, quite room and concentrate on one positive thought for five minutes. If you’re at work, turn away from your computer screen and take seven deep breaths, filling your lungs completely and then letting it out slowly.

5.       Stay on your routine. Don’t let the holidays become a free-for-all. Go to bed at the same time each night and wake up as usual in the morning. Eat healthy meals and continue to be physically active. Having a body that is well rested and well fed will help you better handle those curve balls during the day.

Make this year your happiest holiday season yet by planning ahead and taking steps to reduce your holiday stress.

Thanksgiving

We are officially in the holiday season, which is a time for joy and laughter, but is also a time for thanksgiving.

In September of 1620, a ship called the Mayflower left Plymouth, England in hopes of reaching the New World. The Mayflower carried 102 passengers who were a combination of religious separatists seeking a place where they could freely practice their faith and others who were lured by the promise of prosperity and land ownership.

After 66 days at sea, the Mayflower landed near the tip of Cape Cod and one month later crossed Massachusetts Bay, where the Pilgrims began to establish a village at Plymouth. The first winter in the New World was brutal and only about half of the Mayflower’s original passengers and crew lived to see their first New England spring.

As the settlers moved ashore, they were introduced to a Native American named Squanto. Squanto taught the Pilgrims how to cultivate corn, extract sap from maple trees, catch fish, and avoid poisonous plants. Squanto also helped the settlers form an alliance with the Wampanoag, a local Native American tribe.

In November of 1621, with the success of the Pilgrims’ first corn harvest, the Governor organized a celebratory feast, inviting the colony’s Native American allies. This celebration lasted for three days and later became known as the first Thanksgiving.  While we do not know the exact menu of that first meal, dishes were likely prepared using traditional Native American spices and cooking methods and due to the Mayflower’s dwindling sugar supply, the meal did not include pies or other desserts that we typically associate with Thanksgiving.  

For more than two centuries after that first Thanksgiving, days of thanksgiving were celebrated by individual colonies and states. It wasn’t until 1863, in the midst of Civil War, that President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a national Thanksgiving Day to be held each November.

Source: history.com

The Final Challenge of the Year

We are coming up to our last challenge of the year! The Fall Challenge will start at the end of this month and will run from October 24 through December 3.

For the Fall Challenge, you will be given five new daily activities. The activities for this challenge are:

1. Wear your seat belt each time you are in the car
2. Express your appreciation to someone
3. Sing out loud
4. Eat dinner before 8 p.m. and include a vegetable
5. Do 15 minutes of physical activity and 15 crunches

Throughout the year, we have built upon each challenge to help you create a healthy diet and exercise plan. We started with breakfast; we then worked on eating lunch and a healthy snack; and now that you have those down, it’s time to wrap it up by improving your dinner habits.

We’ve taken this same approach with exercise. Our hope is that you have continued with your lunges and leg lifts to work your lower body, added in curls and kick-backs to improve your arm tone, and will now include crunches to strengthen your core.

Having said that, we know that wellness comes in many forms and is not just about diet and exercise. So, as with each Wellness challenge, we’ve tried to give you activities that will help you improve not only your physical wellness, but also your emotional and social wellness.

You may think that singing out loud is silly for the Wellness challenge or maybe it embarrasses you, but we’re positive that once you start doing it, you will feel the benefits. Singing out loud requires you to use your lungs in a way that you don’t typically, allowing you to take in more oxygen to your body which increases alertness. Then there is the stress relieving factor of singing out loud. The great thing is that these benefits come whether you are lead alto in the choir or whether you sound like nails on a chalkboard. If you classify yourself as the latter, sing in the shower or along with the radio on your car ride home where you will always sound like a Rockstar!

Along with singing, we are asking you to express your appreciation to someone. This can come in many forms such as telling someone thank you or that they did a great job, or even writing a simple note to tell someone what they mean to you. Expressing your appreciation does a few things: it helps to take your mind off yourself and feel gratitude for those around you, plus it can boost the confidence and self-esteem of those who receive your kind words.

Good luck with this last challenge!

Understanding Inflammation and fighting it with Food

Most of us are familiar with the type of inflammation we get when we have a scrape or a swollen knee. However, inflammation can occur outside and inside the body and can be both beneficial and harmful.

Think about a time when you’ve experienced a severe cut. Your body reacts with redness, swelling, and warmth around the area. This type of inflammation is desired. Swelling of the area keeps bacteria out, while redness and warmth result from increased blood flow, which boosts the area with white blood cells.

On the other hand, inflammation can also occur inside of your body, and this kind of inflammation can be dangerous to your health. Inflammation inside your body comes from cell damage. Cell damage can result from physical trauma, high blood pressure, poor glucose control, high cholesterol, and even from the foods you eat.

Inflammation in the body has been linked to cancer, arthritis, diabetes, osteoporosis, and obesity, but most specifically to heart disease and heart attacks. Research has found that people with inflammation in their arteries may be less likely to survive a heart attack. Think of it this way, when the inside of your artery is damaged or “scraped” that inflamed spot allows for substances like cholesterol to invade the damaged area and harden or form clots. Having said that, there are some natural techniques to help avoid inflammation in your body through your diet.

When it comes to reducing inflammation, HOW you cook your food may be just as important as WHAT you cook. Cooking foods quickly at high heat (a common method in our fast-paced culture) creates inflammatory chemicals within the food. For example, grilling, barbecuing, broiling, and pan frying are all more likely to produce these chemicals than baking or roasting. Liquid cooking, such as boiling, steaming, poaching, or stewing, may be your best bet. With liquid cooking, no inflammatory chemicals are generated because the temperature never tops the boiling point of water.

If you are cooking on the grill, try pre-cooking your meat in the oven before placing it on the grill, removing all charred or burnt portions before eating, and keeping portion sizes small (they need less time on the grill).

Cooking with the right oil may also help to cut back on those damaging inflammatory chemicals. While oils are heart healthy and high in unsaturated fat, each oil has a smoke point. An oil should never reach its smoke point because once it does, the nutritional value is compromised and free radicals are released (which can cause cell damage and inflammation). Because of this, be sure that you are using the right oil for what you’re cooking. For example, olive oil has a smoke point of 325 degrees, which makes it a great option for lightly coating pasta or tossing it over vegetables, whereas canola oil has a smoke point of 425 degrees, allowing it to be used in higher temperature cooking and baking.

Finally, practice including anti-inflammatory foods in your diet. Anti-inflammatory foods are those foods high in omega-3 fatty acids (fish and walnuts), and foods packed with antioxidants such as citrus fruits, vegetables, garlic, and onion.       

The Wonders of Water

This month, we’re getting back to our Health Challenges with the start of the Summer Challenge. During the Summer Challenge, you will be asked to wear a pedometer and walk 10,000 steps each day. In addition, we are challenging you to drink 64 ounces of water, talk to a friend, eat a healthy snack, and limit yourself to two hours or less of screen time each day (other than work).

While we are in the peak of the heat, there is no better time then now to start upping your water intake. Our bodies are made of up 70% water and water is needed to help regulate every function.

One of water’s key functions in our body is the transportation of nutrients. When you eat a banana or take a multi-vitamin, it is water that gets those vitamins to your cells where they can take effect. Likewise, water is needed to remove the toxins and waste from your body. Water also aids in digesting food, metabolizing fat, and regulating body temperature.

Drinking plenty of water can also help improve your look. When skin cells are hydrated, they plump to give you a good complexion. Well hydrated muscles look more toned because muscle is 70% water. In addition, drinking water actually helps to prevent water retention (who would have guessed!).

Have you ever thought of water as a weight loss tool? You should! Drinking a glass of water before your meal can help to suppress appetite and reduce your intake. Water is calorie free, so it’s a perfect solution for those times when you want something but aren’t actually hungry.

It’s recommended to consume at least 8 cups (64 ounces) of water each day in order to replace the fluids you naturally lose during the day. While there are benefits to drinking straight water (no calories or added sugar), other options such as flavored water and herbal teas can also contribute to your daily water intake.  

Keep in mind that water needs increase with hot temperatures and exercise. Before doing strenuous exercise, drink 1 to 3 cups of water. Then drink about a half a cup every 15-30 minutes during your workout. To rehydrate afterwards, drink 3 cups of water for every pound of body weight lost.

Have you ever heard that if you feel thirsty you are already dehydrated? Well, it’s true. Thirst, as well as a dry mouth, sleepiness, decreased urine output, dry skin, headaches, and dizziness are all signs of dehydration. Make water your drink of choice at each of your meals and keep a glass or bottle of water on your desk to help you avoid getting to the point of dehydration. If you’re producing lots of clear, dilute urine, you know that you’re well hydrated.

So give your body what it needs and drink up!

Preventive Visit

Over the past six months, we have had the opportunity to travel around the state and perform health screenings for our groups doing the Wellness Program. At each screening, we are stunned by the number of individuals who sit across from us and tell us that they haven’t gone in to the doctor for five years or more.

As we pondered on why so many people are resisting going in to their doctor for an annual checkup, we stopped and took a look at the numbers. Out of all adults who carry EMI Health medical insurance, we found that less than three out of 10 individuals have their preventive visit each year.

So why are all of these individuals, who have coverage for an annual preventive visit, not taking advantage of it? Somewhere along the way, we have adopted a mindset that we only need to go to the doctor when we’re sick. Here at the Wellness Program, we beg to differ and let me tell you why.

Did you know that about half of all deaths from heart disease are sudden and unexpected, with little opportunity for treatment? This is one of many areas where prevention is key. If you are at risk for or have a family history of any conditions, your preventive visit allows you to work with your doctor now in order to reduce the risk of a sudden attack.

Women pay attention: One in eight of you will be diagnosed with breast cancer during your lifetime. But when breast cancer is detected early through a routine mammogram, there is a 98 percent survival rate.

While our hope is that you make changes to your lifestyle now to reduce your risk of developing a condition, you can never truly know if you prevented something. On top of that, there is no guarantee that you won’t get a serious illness. However, what you can do is detect it early on when it is easier to treat and outcomes are better.

Your annual preventive visit with your primary care physician is a time for you to evaluate your health and ask questions. Your doctor can work with you to help better manage your current conditions, reduce your risk for developing chronic conditions, and screen you to detect any abnormalities early on.

We challenge each of you to have your preventive visit with your doctor this year.

Say Sayonara to Soda

During the Spring Challenge, we asked you to forgo drinking soda during lunch. Lunch is the meal when most of us are tempted to grab a soda, whether that is because we are eating out or because we are looking for a mid day pick-me-up. However, before you reach for a soda at your next lunch, consider some of the negative effects it has on your health.

Soda is a concentrated source of calories and sugar. We can quickly guzzle down 150 calories in a matter of minutes, without even noticing it. Just one 12-ounce soda contains about 8 tsp. of sugar. The recommended daily limit of sugar for women is 6 tsp. and men is 9 tsp. Added sugar in the diet can lead to unwanted weight gain. Let’s look at the math: a 12 ounce can of soda contains about 150 calories. Over the course of a year, an extra 150 calories each day adds up to a weight gain of 15 pounds!

In addition, drinking soda can lead to other health problems.  According to a Harvard study, tossing back just one soft drink per day, whether regular or artificially sweetened, can elevate your risk of type 2 diabetes by 15 percent. Also, the caffeine content in soda can lead to side effects such as irritability, restlessness, insomnia, high blood pressure, and irregular heartbeats, just to name a few.

So instead of reaching for the soda in the mid afternoon, opt for a healthier option such as water, 100% fruit juice, or herbal tea.

Enjoy the Sunshine

Now that the sun is finally showing and your favorite TV shows are all coming to an end, spend your extra time outside.

While we are all aware of the relationship between sun exposure and skin cancer risk, there are also some benefits to spending time outside each day. When your skin is exposed to the sun’s rays, your body produces vitamin D. While vitamin D has been well-documented as playing a role in bone health, now links have been made to everything from multiple sclerosis to prostate cancer. Just a few minutes outside each day can give you the vitamin D boost your body needs.

Getting some sun may also shake off the wintertime blues. Research suggests that light hitting your skin, not just your eyes, helps reverse seasonal affective disorder (SAD). Moreover, being outside gets us golfing, gardening, and engaging in other types of physical activity, which gives us mood-boosting endorphins as well has helps work off that winter weight.

Burning a few extra calories each day is easy to do when you spend time outside. Simple activities such as walking after dinner or gardening for 30 minutes will burn over 100 calories. By just burning an extra 100 calories each day, you can lose over 10 pounds in a year! Take it up a notch on the weekends by spending an afternoon outside hiking, play at the park with your kids, or walking around the local farmers market and you may be burning an extra 500 calories or more!

Winter Challenge

The Winter Challenge has officially begun! Let's get started with the first health challenge of the year by focusing on creating some simple, healthy habits. For the Winter Challenge, we are asking you to complete five daily activities:

1. Go tobacco free
2. Give someone a smile
3. Take five minutes to meditate
4. Eat breakfast and include either a whole grain or a fruit
5. Do 10 leg lifts, 10 lunges, and 10 minutes of exercise

Each daily activity is worth one point, giving you the potential to earn five points each day. Remember that in order to receive your points, you must report your activity on the Wellness Website. Please note that the online recording only allows you to go back one week. This means that you need to get on the site and report your progress at least once per week.

We want to be sure that everyone can participate in the challenge, so if at any point you are unable to perform one of the challenge activities due to special circumstance, contact the Health Coach to arrange an alternative activity.

Good luck!


Ellie

Healthy Living Newsletter

Check out this month's Healthy Living newsletter from the American Cancer Society. Topics in this edition include making exercise work for you, healthy food on a tiny budget, and a salmon recipe!

Click here to see the newsletter.


Ellie

Potato lover?

Potato lover? Give sweet potatoes a try! Sweet potatoes are fat free, low in sodium, and high in vitamin C, an antioxidant that helps prevent against heart disease. In addition, these sweet veggies are pack with soluble fiber, the type that helps lower blood sugar and cholesterol.

So try replacing your white potatoes with sweet potatoes and enjoy the health benefits!

Click here to see the top ten ways to eat sweet potatoes.


Be well!


Ellie

January is Health Risk Assessment Month

Take your Health Risk Assessment during the month of January

Completing the health risk assessment (HRA) is the first wellness activity of 2011. The HRA is an electronic form in which you provide information about your health history. The information you provide on the HRA is used to generate a health risk meter showing your health age and personal risk level for major preventable conditions.

Taking the HRA is simple and easy. If you have taken the HRA before, use the month of January to go in and update it by clicking here. If you are taking the HRA for the first time, go to the wellness website (www.emihealth.com/wellness) and follow the instructions under the Health Risk Assessment button.

By completing your HRA, you will earn 180 wellness points! 

Be well!


Ellie