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Trouble Sleeping? Take This Quiz to Find Out Why

Submitted by aduranplazola on

There are several kinds of sleep disorders – insomnia, sleep apnea, restless legs syndrome and narcolepsy to name a few. You might be surprised to find that you have one of these disorders. It’s good to have an idea, so you can make sure you are getting the restful, rejuvenating sleep you need to lead a healthy life. 

 

Take this quiz to see if you might have a sleep disorder. 


 

 

Genesis HealthCare System’s Health and Wellness content conveniently provides accurate and helpful information. Your health history and current health may impact suggestions provided through our Health and Wellness content. Although we hope this information is helpful, it is not a substitute for your doctor's medical advice. Before making any significant changes, please consult your doctor.

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The Health Benefits of a Spa Retreat

Submitted by aduranplazola on

Health experts note the benefits of spa retreats by the positive impact of the following:  

  • Spas can improve your physical and emotional well-being.  
  • Healthy meals, yoga and meditation help the body and mind to refresh.  
  • They reduce levels of anxiety and teach stress reduction methods.  
  • Disengagement breaks from work, family and friends are helpful. 
  • Spas can help the body to slow down and to regenerate. 
  • Practicing yoga can improve blood circulation, sending more oxygen and nutrients through the body. 
  • Body exfoliating treatments polish the skin, promote cells regeneration, refine pores and offer skin relief. 
  • Water treatments — when body is submerged in water, it offers true balance. 
  • Heat treatments — stimulate blood circulation and initiate a purifying process. 
  • Body wraps can recharge the body with nutrients and elements, and boosts moisture in the skin.  
  • Saunas can help to rejuvenate and relax the body and mind.

 

Genesis HealthCare System’s Health and Wellness content conveniently provides accurate and helpful information. Your health history and current health may impact suggestions provided through our Health and Wellness content. Although we hope this information is helpful, it is not a substitute for your doctor's medical advice. Before making any significant changes, please consult your doctor.

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Have fun in the shade

Submitted by aduranplazola on

You might tan easily and have a healthy glow, so does that mean you’re not at risk for skin cancer? Not at all. Always. Wear. Sunscreen. Why? Anyone can get skin cancer, but there are certain characteristics that make you a greater risk. Consider spending more time in the shade if you have: 

  • A lighter, natural skin color. 

  • Skin that burns, freckles, reddens easily, or becomes painful in the sun. 

  • Blue or green eyes. 

  • Blond or red hair. 

  • Certain types and a large number of moles. 

  • A family history of skin cancer. 

  • A personal history of skin cancer. 

  • Are older in age. 

Regardless of whether you have any of the risk factors listed above, reducing your exposure to ultraviolet (UV) rays can help keep your skin healthy and lower your chances of getting skin cancer. Most people get at least some UV exposure from the sun when they spend time outdoors. Making sun protection an everyday habit will help you avoid getting a sunburn, and lower your skin cancer risk. 

There’s no such thing as a healthy tan 

A tan does not indicate good health. A tan is your skin’s response to injury, because skin cells signal that they have been hurt by UV rays by producing more pigment. Any change in skin color after UV exposure, whether it’s a tan or a burn, is a sign of injury. UV exposure can also change skin texture, cause the skin to age prematurely, cause cataracts and cancers of the eye (ocular melanoma).  

In addition to causing sunburn, too much exposure to UV rays can cause skin cancer. Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the United States. The two most common types of skin cancer, basal cell and squamous cell carcinomas, are highly curable but can be disfiguring and costly to treat. Melanoma, the third most common skin cancer, is more dangerous and causes the most deaths. Most of these three types of skin cancer are caused by overexposure to UV light. No matter how sensitive your skin is to the sun, it’s important to protect yourself from UV rays.

 

Genesis HealthCare System’s Health and Wellness content conveniently provides accurate and helpful information. Your health history and current health may impact suggestions provided through our Health and Wellness content. Although we hope this information is helpful, it is not a substitute for your doctor's medical advice. Before making any significant changes, please consult your doctor.

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Breaking bad, habits that is

Submitted by aduranplazola on

Not all habits are made to be broken. Good habits, like making your bed every morning, using manners and not spending more than you earn should be kept. But habits like stress eating, excessive drinking and nail biting, like it or not, are bad for you. Changing your habits is doable. Here’s how: 

  1. Identify Cues 
    Something has to trigger a habit, and a cue can be anything. Maybe stress makes you crave chocolate, or the sound of your alarm triggers you to hit the snooze button. Identifying cues helps you understand what puts your habits into motion. 

  2. Disrupt 
    Once you know the cues, you can throw bad habits off track. If the alarm cues you to hit the snooze button, put the alarm clock on the other side of the room so you’re forced to get up.  

  3. Replace 
    Research from 2011 in a Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin shows that replacing a bad behavior with a good one is more effective than stopping the bad behavior alone. The new behavior “interferes” with the old habit and prevents your brain from going into autopilot. Deciding to eat fruit every time your mind thinks “cookie” substitutes a positive behavior for the negative habit. 

  4. Keep it simple 
    It’s usually hard to change a habit because the behavior has become easy and automatic. The opposite is true, too: new behaviors can be hard because your brain’s basal ganglia, (the “autopilot” part), hasn’t taken over this behavior yet. Simplifying new behaviors helps you integrate them into your autopilot routines. 

  5. Think long-term 
    Habits often form because they satisfy short-term impulses, the way chewing on your nails might immediately calm your nerves. But short-term desires often have long-term consequences, like chewed up fingers. Thinking about the long term while trying to change some habits will help you remember why you’re working to change the habit. 

  6. Persist 
    Research published in Health Psychology Review has shown that what you’ve done before is a strong indicator of what you’ll do next. This means established habits are hard to break. But the good news is, if you keep at it, your new behaviors will turn into habits, too. Persistence works. 

With a bit of time and some effort, healthy behaviors can become second nature.

 

Genesis HealthCare System’s Health and Wellness content conveniently provides accurate and helpful information. Your health history and current health may impact suggestions provided through our Health and Wellness content. Although we hope this information is helpful, it is not a substitute for your doctor's medical advice. Before making any significant changes, please consult your doctor.

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Chew on this: foods to eliminate to feel better

Submitted by aduranplazola on

How much do you really think about WHAT you're putting into your mouth? If you're like most people, not very much. Nutrition decisions matter when it comes to keeping us healthy and preventing chronic illnesses.

 

Genesis HealthCare System’s Health and Wellness content conveniently provides accurate and helpful information. Your health history and current health may impact suggestions provided through our Health and Wellness content. Although we hope this information is helpful, it is not a substitute for your doctor's medical advice. Before making any significant changes, please consult your doctor.

How much do you really think about WHAT you're putting into your mouth? If you're like most people, not very much. Nutrition decisions matter when it comes to keeping us healthy and preventing chronic illnesses.

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Can Rubbing Behind the Ears Help You Live Longer?

Submitted by aduranplazola on

It can if you are rubbing the adorable head of your best friend who happens to be your dog. Numerous studies indicate caring for a dog can lead to a longer, healthier life. To make it easier for you, we gathered the information below. 

Knowing a wagging tail will greet you at home, can create feelings of joy, reduce stress and lower blood pressure. The health benefits don’t stop there. People who own dogs are 34% more likely to walk for the recommended amount of 150 minutes each week. Dog owners are also 31% less likely to die from a heart attack or stroke than people who do not own a dog.  

Still questioning if dogs can improve your health? For hundreds of years, animals including dogs have been used to help the sick and injured recover. These days, therapy dogs are a common sight and often visit hospitals bringing smiles to patients. Dogs are a companion that can make you feel happier, better and live longer.  

The real question is not whether you should get a dog, but what will you name it?  

For more health tips, visit the Health and Wellness section of Genesis.org and talk to your doctor.

 

Genesis HealthCare System’s Health and Wellness content conveniently provides accurate and helpful information. Your health history and current health may impact suggestions provided through our Health and Wellness content. Although we hope this information is helpful, it is not a substitute for your doctor's medical advice. Before making any significant changes, please consult your doctor.

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If I’m not sweaty, does my workout count?

Submitted by aduranplazola on

You spend an hour in a spin class one day and an hour in yoga class the next. You sweat in one and not the other, so does that mean one’s a better workout? If you run three miles on a hot July evening and sweat profusely, and run the exact three-mile route in January and sweat half as much, was it less of a workout?  

Everyone has a different sweating pattern. Gender, age, fitness level and environment contribute to how much you sweat. Women seem to sweat less and start to sweat at higher temperatures than men. People tend to sweat less as they grow old and cannot take the heat as well as younger people. Our bodies, regardless of age or gender, produce heat and the more your muscles contract, the more heat is produced. If our body didn’t have ways of keeping you cool, we would overheat. 

“When you exercise, focus on how you feel, and stay hydrated. Sweating is the body’s way to cool off, not an indicator of the number of calories burned,” said Stephen Ulrich, M.D., family practice, Perry County Family Practice and Genesis HealthCare System medical director of WellnessWins. “It’s not uncommon for people with larger body masses to sweat more.” 

Heat radiates out of the skin if the air around you is cooler than your body. Think January run. Exercise produces heat, heat produces calorie expenditure, and you produce the same amount of heat whether exercising in a cold environment or a hot one. Just because you don’t sweat as much in a colder environment does not mean your exercise session was less productive. 

There are two key factors that determine an effective calorie burn: duration and intensity. When you're ready to do more, you can build on your routine by adding new physical activities. Increase the distance, time, or difficulty of your favorite activity or do your activities more often. For example, if you walk regularly for exercise, gradually increase the duration of your walk over several days to weeks by walking longer distances. You can increase the intensity by walking more briskly or up hills. 

Don’t stress about your sweat, just keep moving. Regular exercise, of any kind, with a balanced diet is a healthy way to achieve and maintain a healthy body. Talk to your health care provider before you begin an exercise routine.  

 

Source: Healthguidance.org, American Heart Association

 

Genesis HealthCare System’s Health and Wellness content conveniently provides accurate and helpful information. Your health history and current health may impact suggestions provided through our Health and Wellness content. Although we hope this information is helpful, it is not a substitute for your doctor's medical advice. Before making any significant changes, please consult your doctor.

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Want to Reduce Stress? Set Daily Goals

Submitted by aduranplazola on

Do you ever feel stressed because there are too many things to do and not enough time to do them? Do you sometimes worry you’ll forget something important? Do you ever notice physical symptoms of stress, like a rapidly beating heart? 
 
Okay. Take a deep breath. We can deal with this. 

First, know this: it’s normal to feel these ways once in a while. But if stress starts dominating your every waking hour—or is starting to keep you up at night—you need to do something about it. 

The good news is, you can start reducing your stress right now by goal setting.  

Do the words “goal setting” sound daunting? Don’t worry. Goal setting doesn’t have to involve reassessing your entire life or take hours of planning to be helpful. 

In fact, making lists with your daily goals is one powerful, yet incredibly simple way of reducing stress. When you write your daily goals down in the morning, several positive things happen automatically—before you’ve even done anything on the list: 

  1. It takes the pressure off: you no longer need to worry you’ll forget something. 

  2. It allows you to see the “big picture,” so you can better decide which items you should tackle first. 

  3. It helps give structure to your day and more often than not helps you realize things aren’t as bad as they seemed. 

You don’t need to get goal setting apps or software, unless, of course, you want to—in fact, stepping offline and jotting things down by hand, on a small notepad can often be stress-reducing in itself. 

Then, when it comes time to take care of your tasks, stay realistic about the time it may take to complete them. Cut yourself some slack if you don’t get everything done. Remember, tomorrow is another day. 

Now, a final word to the wise: if you don’t deal with the stress you are experiencing, it could lead not only to more serious mental health challenges, but physical problems like heart disease, obesity and/or high blood pressure. 

If you’re looking for additional ideas to maintain your positive mental health, the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services recommends the following: 

  • Getting professional help if you need it 

  • Connecting with others 

  • Staying positive 

  • Getting physically active 

  • Helping others 

  • Getting enough sleep 

  • Developing coping skills 

 

Source: https://www.mentalhealth.gov/basics/what-is-mental-health

 

Genesis HealthCare System’s Health and Wellness content conveniently provides accurate and helpful information. Your health history and current health may impact suggestions provided through our Health and Wellness content. Although we hope this information is helpful, it is not a substitute for your doctor's medical advice. Before making any significant changes, please consult your doctor.

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Caffeine: A Blessing or a Curse?

Submitted by aduranplazola on

Full disclosure, we are among the many who enjoy caffeine. It brightens our day and enables us to like mornings. Despite our love of energy in a cup, we will present an unbiased representation of the facts. We just hope we don’t regret writing this piece because we learn we should give up caffeine.  

Take the quiz below to test your caffeine knowledge:


 

 

Genesis HealthCare System’s Health and Wellness content conveniently provides accurate and helpful information. Your health history and current health may impact suggestions provided through our Health and Wellness content. Although we hope this information is helpful, it is not a substitute for your doctor's medical advice. Before making any significant changes, please consult your doctor.

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The A, B, Cs (and D, E and Ks) of vitamin supplements

Submitted by aduranplazola on

No matter who you are, and no matter what your age, your body requires 13 different vitamins for overall health and to promote proper functioning. These include vitamins A, B (which include the vitamins thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, pantothenic acid, biotin, B-6, B-12 and folate) C, D and K.  

 

All these vitamins have specific jobs — and if you don’t get enough of them, you could develop issues. For example, not enough B-12 could make you anemic. Not enough vitamin E could lead to issues with your nervous system. And shorting yourself of vitamin D could cause bone abnormalities. Is a vitamin supplement the way to avoid these problems? 

 

The supplement aisle at most supermarkets is bursting at the seams with an enormous variety of single vitamins and multivitamins, from A to Z. Capsules. Powders. Gummies. Tablets. Some for men, some for women. Some for pregnant women, some for children and some that include minerals as well.  

 

Frankly, it’s overwhelming. 

 

Do you need to purchase a cupboard full of vitamins? Or will a single multivitamin do the trick? How can you be sure your body is getting all the vitamins it needs in the first place?  

 

Take a deep breath and put your mind at ease. According to the National Institutes of Health, if you eat a well-balanced diet and get enough exposure to sunlight, you should be getting all the vitamins your body needs. (Your body also produces vitamins D and K on its own.)  

 

Not sure if your diet would make the cut? According to the Centers for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC), a healthy diet should: 

 

  • Focus on fresh fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and fat-free or low-fat milk and milk products 

  • Include lean meat, poultry, fish, beans, eggs, and nuts 

  • Low in saturated fats, trans fats, cholesterol, salt and added sugars 

 

If your diet seems like it’s falling short, here’s a tip. “Take the money you could be spending on supplements and purchase more fresh fruits and vegetables instead,” said Sarah Brauning, a registered and licensed dietitian with Genesis Diabetes & Nutrition Education. “You’ll still get the vitamins you need, and you’ll get to enjoy the taste as well.”   

 

Finally, consider your overall wellness. For example, do you have an existing health issue, such as anemia? Are you overweight or obese, which might mean you don’t get the proper nutrition from your diet? Then you might benefit from a vitamin supplement. If that’s the case, save time and spend your money wisely by first asking your doctor about the type of vitamin supplement that might be right for you.

 

Genesis HealthCare System’s Health and Wellness content conveniently provides accurate and helpful information. Your health history and current health may impact suggestions provided through our Health and Wellness content. Although we hope this information is helpful, it is not a substitute for your doctor's medical advice. Before making any significant changes, please consult your doctor.

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