Breathe in, breathe out…
Supposing you have chosen and continue to eat the best nutrient dense foods. The best nutrient dense foods are foods that are chosen from the plant kingdom and prepared in a simple way. You don’t want to lose the nutrients through overcooking or too much processing. 'Make it simple' is the general rule. Eat lots of raw fruits and raw vegetables. Then you need to move so that this good food that is turned to good blood can circulate round to feed your cells with the nutrients.
Today, many people have jobs that keep them on a seat for most hours of the day. Many are dealing with overweight and many illnesses that result from an inactive lifestyle. Exercise is the modern fountain of youth. Incorporate walking into your daily schedule.
Another of the eight basic principles of health is Fresh Air. And it goes along well with exercise. You should combine fresh air with exercise and this is achieved when you walk outdoors.
Have you ever wondered why living outdoors can be very healthy? One of the benefits of outdoor life is the presence of living plants. They give off what you need so much of-Air. Here is one health need we required to remain alive that we often take for granted. We often poison our homes by shutting out air, closing our windows etc.
Some people plant indoor plants to get this freshness from living plants. And very well so as
live plants do a lot more than enhance the appearance of homes, they enrich the air with oxygen and absorb carbon dioxide. Some even remove toxic pollutants from the air we breathe, even within the home.
Modern homes and offices buildings are usually sealed tight to give artificial ventilation and many homes have their doors and windows locked for security purposes. Many have thick curtains covering their windows so that air cannot enter well. For those who smoke or have things that cause smoke produce dangerous pollutants. Certain wood products have chemicals like formaldehyde seeping through. Other chemicals can come from carpeting, copy machines, upholstery, and cleaning products. Carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide are two poisonous gases from cooking stoves or kerosene lanterns. Other pollutants come from dust, air mites, mold and fungi, Ozone, lead, asbestos, pesticide residues and in some areas radon gas.
These pollutants affect people. You can suspect such exposure by noting the following symptoms:
burning eyes, sore throats, coughing, and itching, to headaches, sluggishness, nausea, dizziness, feelings of exhaustion, and depression. These symptoms are referred to as “sick building syndrome.”
You can protect yourself in two major ways:
First control exposure to the pollutants:
Ban smoking indoors where you work and where you live. It's not only the smoker that gets the effects of the chemicals in smoke, the second-hand smoker also suffers.
All gas, oil or kerosene appliances should be well vented to the outdoors. And don’t forget the gas stoves.
Make sure air-conditioning units are well maintained. The air ducts and filters should be cleaned regularly
Use air fresheners sparingly.
Avoid running your car engine in a stationary position (idling) in an attached garage or near an open window.
The second major way to prevent and protect yourself from these pollutants is to improve ventilation by opening your windows and to set up good cross ventilation. Fresh air dilutes trapped fumes and therefore decreases their health threats and enriches stale air. In closed areas the same air is breathed over and over again, oxygen decreases, and the carbon dioxide and other wastes increase, resulting in sleepiness, sluggishness and headaches.
Here are practical ways of achieving this goal of proper ventilation:
Set air-conditioning systems to bring in 20-30% (or more) fresh air.
Air out your house at least once a day. On smoky, smoggy or foggy days air out the house at night or in the early mornings. In most areas air pollutants particulate matter drops considerably once the sun has set.
Sleep with windows opened. If possible, set up cross ventilation in your bedroom. You will wake up feeling refreshed.
Fresh air is so important to personal health
Air is composed of 20% oxygen, the rest being nitrogen along with few other gases. The human body operates on oxygen; each of its 100 trillion cells must receive steady, fresh supplies, or die. Oxygen is picked up in the lungs from the air we breathe and delivered to our bodies via the red blood cells. Well-oxygenated cells are healthy and contribute to overall well-being. Anything that diminishes oxygen supply to the lungs, or its delivery to the body cells, is very harmful. Air molecules can also be positively or negatively charged. Polluted air is usually full of positive ions. It’s commonly found in freeways, at airports, and in closed, poorly ventilated areas.
The negatively charged air is optimum for your health
This kind of air is refreshing and will give you a lift. Air rich in negative ions is plentiful around lakes, in forest, near rivers and waterfalls, at seashore, and after a rainstorm.
How can you get this fresh air if you don’t have the privilege of getting to visit these places often?
Stop where you are and take a few slow, deep breaths several times a day. This gives your body an extra “shot of Oxygen” and helps unload carbon dioxide. It also is a “feel good” technique. But another way to flush your body with oxygen is to exercise. Activity opens up blood vessels and speeds those oxygen-laden red blood cells on their rounds.
And don’t forget the idea of having houseplants
Live plants “eat” many toxic pollutants and freshen the air with oxygen; they may give some extra negative ions as well.
Answer these questions to assess yourself, whether you are having enough air:
How are you sitting right now? Is your spine straight, or are you sloughing. Are your shoulders rolled forward?
Observe your breathing for a few moments. Is it shallow or deep?
Do the clothes you are wearing, or the chair you are sitting in restricting your breathing?
Is the room you are in well ventilated with fresh air, or is it closed and stuffy?
Have you (or will you) exercise today? Plan for it. You’ll be glad you did.
Have you eaten a high fat (all fried foods, if you can see the oil in your food and all animal foods) meal today, which may reduce your blood’s ability to carry oxygen?
When was the last time you got around and moved around? Have you taken a break or done some deep breathing during the past couple hours?