Adopt strategies to protect your body from stress

Today’s lifestyle is high-stress and can wear people down.

Stress is linked to physical and mental health problems, including atrophy of the brain regions involved in thinking and memory.

You need not visit your doctor each time you experience stress, but there are ways you can protect yourself from the damaging effects of stress. Here are some strategies that can make you more resilient to the effects of stress.

Many people simply cannot say no to a request for help. If you find your time is too precious to give more, say no.

Develop close ties with people, especially positive people. They will be there for advice and support if you need them.

Have hope for the future.

Learn to live with a situation as it is rather than worry about it.

Establish goals and stick with them until they are accomplished.

In a highly stressful situation, try to think things through and not feel entirely helpless.

medical news

Many people are on doctor-recommended aspirin regimens to prevent heart attacks and strokes. Doctors might suggest coated aspirin is gentler on the stomach.

But in a study at the University of Pennsylvania, half the participants did not fully absorb the coated aspirin within eight hours, but all absorbed the uncoated aspirin. Check with your doctor before you decide to change.

Ming-Tsang Wu, a professor at the University of Taiwan, said that when volunteers ate hot soup from plastic bowls made with melamine, levels of the chemical in their urine were up to 6.4 times higher than in people who ate soup from ceramic bowls. This chemical has been linked to kidney stones. Serving hot foods in ceramic dishes is best.

Light exercise after a meal keeps unhealthful fats at bay. Immediately after they are eaten, lipids enter the bloodstream. Some of the most dangerous are triglycerides, which can raise the risk of heart disease. Now evidence shows that performing light exercise an hour after eating can lower triglyceride levels as much as 40 milligrams per deciliter. The exercise routine consisted of a 1.2-mile walk followed by squats, push-ups, leg raises and other resistance exercises.

A big thank you to all who called and signed up for classes at the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute. The secretary told me the telephone rang for most of the morning. I know you will enjoy the learning, fun and new faces you will meet.
