Proven Scientific Methods for a Healthy Lifestyle and Disease Prevention

The best approach is to avoid negative situations and emotions. However, if you feel your stress levels rising, it's time to pause and do whatever relaxes and refocuses you the most.

(Photo: shutterstock)(Photo: shutterstock)
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Dr. Dean Ornish is a leading American cardiologist who, for 30 years, has treated thousands of patients suffering from heart and vascular diseases. He developed a model for a healthy lifestyle that has been scientifically and empirically proven while treating patients over the years.

His model is based on four important areas that are interconnected and essential for a healthy lifestyle and disease prevention:

  1. Healthy Nutrition – Nutrition is essential because it provides people with the energy and "fuel" their bodies need to function, with Hashem's help. Rambam extensively discussed the importance of healthy nutrition as we explained in this article.
  2. Physical Activity – Numerous studies worldwide have proven that physical activity is crucial for the proper functioning of all vital body systems, including the nervous, digestive, and immune systems. It's important to tailor the physical activity to the individual's capabilities. For example, if you're recovering from an illness or not feeling your best, it's the time for moderate exercise to boost and strengthen the immune system and improve your mood. It's not the time for intense activities like strenuous aerobics or long runs, which could tire you and weaken the body, making it less able to cope with stressors, heaven forbid. Alternatively, if you are pregnant or planning a pregnancy, consider the appropriate physical activities as we recommended in this article.

(Photo: shutterstock)(Photo: shutterstock)

  1. Supportive Community – Dr. Ornish emphasizes that a supportive community is essential for healing and a healthy lifestyle. It allows us to enjoy an attentive ear, share our worries, receive feedback, develop, and feel connected to something bigger than ourselves! A supportive community like a synagogue is one such example, but there are also other communities, such as women's groups or those focused on weight loss, fertility, or any other interest of yours, providing various types of support such as emotional, scientific, and sometimes even physical, with Hashem's help.
  2. Relaxation and Stress Relief - It's been scientifically proven that stress and anxiety, restlessness, and uncertainty are risk factors for many diseases like high blood pressure and weaken the immune system, making the body more vulnerable to infections or foreign factors like COVID-19 and influenza, and less able to fight them effectively.

Everyone has their way to relax. It's very important for everyone to know themselves, their weaknesses, but also their strengths. One of the greatest strengths is knowing how not to get into negative situations and feelings like stress and anxiety, or at least to reduce their frequency and intensity. But if you feel your stress, anger, or anxiety levels start to rise, it's time to stop and do what calms and refocuses you the most.

Additionally, these negative emotions can lead to emotional eating, sadness, gloom, or depression if intensified and not properly addressed in time. Therefore, if you feel you're becoming nervous, about to shout or are already shouting, or feel an eating urge or have already started eating, it's time to stop. Breathe. And choose one or more of the excellent ways to calm down. The first method is physical activity.

  • Physical Activity – If you had a difficult and frustrating day at the office, make sure you always have sneakers in your car or office. If you can manage a brisk walk in a green park, promenade, or near the sea before returning home, or even in the neighborhood near home, the location itself will help change the atmosphere, calm you, and the physical activity will help release dopamine, greatly improving your mood and benefiting the nervous system and other body systems.

If you work from home or need to return home immediately after work, then find time to exercise in the evening when you're free. You can still go for a walk with a friend or partner and then share and vent your anger during the physical activity.

If that's not possible, you can find a variety of videos online in various lengths, even 30 minutes, where you can do aerobic, Pilates, or yoga exercises at home. This way, you can exercise at home whenever it's convenient for you and release the tensions accumulated during the day.

It's recommended to try two types of physical activities:

  1. Stimulating Physical Activity – like kickboxing or aerobics. On a personal note: I remember days after a stressful and frustrating workday, where I imagined the head of the person who annoyed me the most that day and vented my anger on the punching bag! I'd release all my anger, nerves, and sadness on the punching bag and leave the class calmer and more relaxed after the emotional release. If it's not possible to go to a gym or workout center for a kickboxing class, you can hang such a bag at home and vent your anger whenever needed. It's also a great solution for those working from home... There are also boxing and kickboxing videos online to inspire. Aerobics or HIIT are also stimulating activities that increase the heart rate, boost blood circulation, improve the function of bodily systems including the nervous system, and if you expend a lot of energy during them, including negative energy, you'll be more relaxed afterward.

(Photo: shutterstock)(Photo: shutterstock)

  1. Relaxing Physical Activity – like Pilates, yoga, tai chi, or Feldenkrais. Such activities encourage proper breathing, which in itself helps calm. The body releases tensions and anger even during these activities – if you enjoy them and they suit your mood. Full disclosure: sometimes due to the calmness of yoga, I would leave more irritated from the class or even leave in the middle of the class, because I needed to release energy and vent pent-up anger, and only afterward calm down. And there were times when Pilates did its job faithfully and I left feeling more relaxed. The most important thing is to listen to yourself, understand what will do you good, and do it in the most beneficial way.

Bach flowers can also help in dealing with stress and pressure, as detailed in this article.

Essential oils can also help in dealing with negative emotions, as we detailed in this article.

Good luck! I believe in you!

Noa Roll is a naturopath ND specializing in emotional eating and dealing with stress and negative emotions.

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תגיות:health Nutrition

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