So who can define a healthy living? Is it a life where you only live of what nature provides your with or is it a life where you use the benefits of technology of modern society to improve your life.
When I started writing this I thought how hard can it really be? The latest buzz word is healthy living, you pay extra money for healthy living, whether it is a house in a “country setting” or a meal from a “health market”. My question is always, why should a healthy living cost you an arm and a leg. I am a researcher by heart so I decided to do some hardcore “google” research to find an answer to this very seemingly simple question.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO) “A healthy lifestyle is a way of living that lowers the risk of being seriously ill or dying early. Health is not just about avoiding disease. It is also about physical, mental and social wellbeing.” So what does this mean? Don’t smoke, don’t drink, exercise? Do we really pay attention to the important things in life?
You can find various scary facts on the internet about the impact of our busy lifestyle and all will point to one thing. We are not living a balanced and healthy life. I am of the opinion that a balanced life might be the missing link for a healthy lifestyle. How do you keep your mind healthy? By constantly challenging your mind maybe through word puzzles or even solving a challenging situation at home or the office. But you can only do this when you ensure your nutritional needs are met. There are plenty of opinions out there about what food is the best for your mind, but all agree that Omega – 3 is essential. Do you get enough Omega – 3 in your diet?
Let’s take our family and lifestyle as an example. We both have very demanding careers, with more stress than what we should deal with. We also have plenty of business trips to different parts of the country, all of which contribute to poor sleep, bad eating, and limited family time. Following an LCHF lifestyle we always try and eat as “pure” as possible, but sadly most Restaurants and Hotels in South Africa do not truly cater for this lifestyle.
So what is the difference between a balanced and healthy life? Are they directly correlated or two separate concepts. I believe a balanced lifestyle will lead to healthy living. But how do we ensure that we pass the good habits to our kids? We were forced to change our lifestyle in order to save Little M’s life, and now she is our motivation to improve every aspect of our busy lives. As a child, I was told you need sugar and starch (rice, potatoes, bread) to grow and have energy, and of course, you need fruit and fruit juice. I never questioned my eating habits, not even when I suffered from heartburn as early as 4 years old. But times are changing and luckily you can find plenty of online resources to help you teach the young ones about a healthy and balanced life.
So if healthy living includes all aspects of body, mind, and soul, how do you ensure that you can truly embrace “healthy living” and reap the rewards. We decided to write our own Healthy Living Manifesto. What it means to us as a family and how we will try and ensure, through all the hectic schedules, to pass the essentials behind healthy living to Little M.
References
http://www.kznhealth.gov.za/healthyliving.pdf
https://www.dosomething.org/us/facts/11-facts-about-healthy-living
http://www.disneyhealthyliving.co.za/articles/how-sugar-affects-body
For the love of...... 