A healthy lifestyle is a combination of diet, exercise and stress management. It can help you reduce the risk of diseases and prolong your life.
Eat a wide variety of foods from each food group to meet your nutritional needs. Avoid excessive alcohol intake, which can lead to disease and obesity.
Physical Activity
Physical activity is any form of movement that uses energy. It is important for people of all ages and can help them meet their healthy living goals. It reduces risk of many noncommunicable diseases, improves aspects of cognitive function and balance, helps maintain a healthy weight, and can increase fitness. It also benefits communities and economies through increased productivity and lower worker absenteeism and turnover, as well as reduced traffic congestion, air pollution, and costs for managing disability.
However, it is not always easy for everyone to get enough physical activity. In fact, insufficient physical activity is one of the world’s leading causes of death. Insufficient physical activity is also associated with a wide range of behavioral health conditions, including depression, anxiety and substance use disorders. Healthy lifestyles include daily healthy habits that promote healthy eating and regular exercise. These healthy behaviors can help prevent disease, reduce the need for costly medical treatment and create a sense of personal well-being.
Healthy Diet
The healthy lifestyle is an individual journey. It’s what feels right to you to be happy, physically and emotionally healthy. For some, it may mean waking up with enthusiasm for the day, eating a salad every meal and spending time (virtual or in-person) with loved ones. For others, it may mean training for and participating in two marathons a year, following a keto diet and abstaining from alcohol.
Eating a healthy diet – which includes foods and beverages low in added sugars, saturated fats and salt – is important at every life stage. Healthy eating patterns can help people meet their nutrient needs, maintain a healthy weight and reduce their risk of chronic diseases.
Eating healthily can help protect against malnutrition and noncommunicable diseases, including obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and some cancers. It can also contribute to a healthy body weight and skeletal development. Eating a balanced diet — with plenty of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins and dairy — is essential to your well-being.
Stress Management
Taking steps to learn healthy stress-relief strategies pays off big time in terms of improved health and a balanced life. Stress is a natural reaction to the demands of daily life. A little bit of it can be good, motivating you to perform well at work or school. However, too much can cause trouble.
Whether the stress is caused by something new or something that happens regularly, such as sitting in traffic or meeting deadlines, it’s important to find ways to cope. Sometimes the solution is as simple as rearranging your schedule or learning how to say no to others’ requests. You may need to seek help from a mental health professional who can teach you techniques to better manage your daily stressors.
Although some stresses are unavoidable, long-term stress can increase your risk for heart disease, high blood pressure, depression and obesity. Talking to your healthcare provider about finding healthful ways to minimize your stress is a good place to start.
Sleep
While significant resources are invested in programs promoting healthy diet and physical activity, sleep health is often overlooked. Yet getting enough quality sleep is equally as important for your health as eating well and exercising regularly.
During sleep, the body is able to heal damaged cells and boost immunity. It also produces a protein called cytokines that help to activate white blood cells and ward off infections. When sleep is impaired, cytokine production is reduced.
Insufficient sleep increases your risk for obesity, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease and stroke, poor mental health, and early death. Getting too little sleep can also make it difficult to perform well at work and be safe behind the wheel of a car.
To get a good night’s rest, set a regular bedtime and wake time and stick to it. Avoid electronics, large meals, and caffeine and alcohol in the hours before bedtime. Aim for seven to nine hours of sleep per night.Hälsosam livsstil