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Whether or not your New Year’s resolution involved developing healthier habits, heed these nine tips from the BWH Division of Preventive Medicine’s chief, JoAnn Manson, MD, DrPH, and Channing Laboratory’s Meir Stampfer, MD, DrPH, to start 2009 off strong.
1. Don’t smoke. If you smoke cigarettes, you are missing the whole point, Stampfer said. “Smoking overwhelms almost everything else. It contributes to numerous diseases and causes wrinkles. Quitting smoking has immediate (probably within weeks, and maybe even a day!) health benefits, no matter how long or heavily you smoked.”
Added Manson, “New tools and medications are available to help smokers quit, so talk with your doctor about the options.”
2. Work in a Workout. Regular physical activity of at least moderate intensity is extremely important. “Any activity is better than none, but one half-hour per day of walking at a brisk pace should be considered at a minimal level,” Stampfer said. “In my family, we do different activities, such as running, cycling, swimming or using the stair climber and elliptical trainer.”
Manson suggests wearing a pedometer. “New research indicates that routinely wearing a pedometer encourages people to walk about an extra mile each day, lose weight and lower their blood pressure,” she said.
3. You do have the time. “Nearly everyone can take a couple of brisk 15-minute walks during the day,” Stampfer said. “If you are waiting in line, practice standing on one foot. I find it helps to try to plan for exercise everyday, and to ask myself, when will I exercise tomorrow?”
4. Don’t overlook strength training for upper and lower body. “Too many people neglect resistance exercise, particularly women, for whom it’s crucial for preventing bone and muscle loss with age,” Manson said. “In addition to aerobic activities, lift weights for at least 20 minutes, two to three times per week.”
5. Include fish in your diet. Manson suggests at least two servings of fish per week. The oils in darker types of fish, such as salmon, tuna, mackerel and herring are beneficial for the heart and brain and may even lower the risk of cancer, she said.
6. Beware of trans fats, even when a package label boasts “Trans fat free.” “This is the most important type of fat to avoid,” Stampfer said. A package can be labeled trans fat free even if it contains up to half a gram of trans fat per serving. “Look at the ingredients to find partially hydrogenated vegetable oil to determine if there is trans fat in the product,” he said. “If the oil is fully hydrogenated, it becomes saturated fat. Lightly hydrogenated is not better, and is likely worse than heavily hydrogenated oils.”
7. Eat your fruits and vegetables. They should provide the mainstay of the diet, Stampfer said. Eat plenty of dark green vegetables such as spinach for salad, rather than iceberg lettuce, and a variety of fruits. “I know of no strong evidence especially supporting particular types of fruit over others,” he said. “It’s preferable to eat the whole fruit in order to get the fiber rather than drink a fruit juice.”
8. Don’t overdo it on vitamin supplements. “Try to get most vitamins and minerals from foods and consider a multivitamin for insurance,” said Manson. Evidence for benefits of mega-dose supplements is sparse. Added Manson, “Supplements that are worthwhile, beyond multivitamins, are extra folic acid during pregnancy, calcium 1000-1200 mg/d, and vitamin D 1000 IU/d.”
9. Talk to your physician about taking aspirin for heart protection, but don’t just assume that it’s right for everyone. A large clinical trial suggested that healthy women younger than age 65 don’t get heart protection from aspirin, Manson said. “Women who are the best candidates for long-term aspirin are age 65 or older or have a history of cardiovascular disease or diabetes. And be aware that aspirin has some serious risks, including gastrointestinal bleeding.”
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