A recent survey of Americans found that 71% of us rate our overall health and wellness as good (54%) or excellent (17%). The signs are that Americans are doing the main things well, like getting enough sleep and exercising regularly. However, it is also true that more than two-thirds of Americans are either overweight or obese.
So, while there is some contradiction in the state of America in terms of health and well-being, making beneficial changes to your lifestyle is easier than we think. Implementing healthy habits in our daily lifestyles can have wide-ranging benefits for our overall health.
In this blog post, we will look at seven healthy habits that you can start right now. As you will see, one of these to increase your daily intake of high-quality dairy ingredients, which is easy thanks to Ingredia.
1. Wake Up Early
People who wake up early are the envy of us all! Though it can be difficult to wake up early, after a few weeks you will have established a very beneficial habit. Waking up earlier gives you more time to plan and organize your day, as well as having more time to eat a healthy breakfast, exercise, and practice yoga.
A more regular sleeping routine, where your body knows that it will awaken at the same time each day, can lead to better overall sleep. Waking up feeling energized is a wonderful start to the day.
2. Increase Your Water Consumption
If there is one easy habit that we can all start doing right now, it’s drinking more water. Drinking more water helps to aid digestion, normalize blood pressure, carry nutrients and oxygen to our cells, flush bacteria from our bladders, and so much more.
Given that 60% of our bodies are water, it makes sense to regularly replenish the fluids in our bodies. Two liters should be the minimum amount of water we all consume daily.
3. Consume Plenty of Dairy Products
Research shows us that a worrying percentage of Americans do not consume enough dairy foods. A staggering 88% of us do not get the required amount of dairy in our everyday diet.
Dairy products are essential to our health and well-being, especially when it comes to building and maintaining strong bones and muscles. Dairy products like milk produce high amounts of essential nutrients like calcium, Vitamin D, and potassium.
At Ingredia, we create higher-quality dairy ingredients through cutting-edge technologies and innovative solutions. That way, you will reap more of the benefits of consuming milk and other dairy products in an ethical and sustainable way.
4. Make Exercise a Daily Habit
In these modern times, we are increasingly living more sedentary lifestyles where exercise is often overlooked. However, the health benefits of regular physical activity are many. Exercising can reduce our risk of heart attacks, help to manage our weight, lower our blood cholesterol level, lower the risk of developing osteoporosis, and much more.
It’s worth pointing out that you don’t have to train like a professional athlete to be healthy, either. As little as 30 minutes of moderate physical activity every day can have huge health benefits. Going for a brisk walk at lunchtime, for example, is a great means of getting in some exercise each day.
5. Spend Time Away From Screens
This is another point tied to our increasingly sedentary lifestyles. We spend much of our day looking at screens, be they TVs, computers, or mobile phones. Too much screen time each day can affect our sleep, result in obesity, depression, anxiety, and lead to neck and back problems.
Try and limit your use of screens when you don’t absolutely need them, like in the evenings after work. Read a book or spend time outside in nature and reap the benefits instead.
6. Swap Junk Food for Fruits and Nuts
Snaking on unhealthy foods is something that many of us do without even realizing. We may be working at our desk or watching TV on the couch and our hands will automatically go for a packet of crisps or a bar of chocolate.
Instead, stock up your kitchen with healthier snacks like fruits (apples and strawberries are great options) and nuts (almonds, pistachios, and hazelnuts to name just three). You’ll still be able to snack but you’ll be doing your body a favor with these healthy eating habits.
7. Get a Good Night’s Sleep
Let’s tie this whole list together with getting a good night’s sleep. Adults are advised to sleep between seven and nine hours, while teenagers and children need even more.
There are many benefits to getting a good night’s sleep. These include keeping your immune system strong, improving attention and concentration, looking after your emotional well-being, reducing stress, and keeping your heart healthy. So, do yourself a favor and make time to rest!
Make a Goal of Implementing These Important Healthy Habits
As you can see, there are myriad ways of improving your overall health by implementing healthy habits. From getting enough sleep to eating more dairy products and exercising daily, you can make important changes that your body will thank you for.
The best strategy is to start by implementing small changes in your daily routine, rather than trying to do much at once. Over time, you can gradually improve the number of healthy living habits you do each day.
Since 2009, Ingredia has been creating higher-quality dairy ingredients in the US. Our clinically-approved dairy ingredients provide all kinds of health and lifestyle benefits. With our products, you can boost immunity and digestive health, regulate blood sugar levels, and promote muscle and bone health.
Check out our activities here to discover the health benefits of dairy and learn more about why Ingredia is your partner in health.
In the United States, there are about 210,000 children under the age of 20 who have diabetes. Because this is such a huge issue, it is vital that you help your child learn to manage their diabetes.
Do you want to learn more about how you can help your child manage diabetes? Keep reading these tips for diabetes management.
1. Help Them Check Their Blood Sugar
Keeping tabs on your blood sugar is one of the most important parts of staying safe when you have diabetes. There are many situations where your child will need to check their blood sugar. Because of this, you need to teach your child to learn how to check their own blood sugar.
They can keep a bag full of all the supplies they need and bring them with them wherever they go. This bag should include a blood sugar meter, testing strips, lancets, and more. When necessary, it should include insulin and a glucagon emergency kit when prescribed by your doctor.
2. Learn About Diet and Exercise
Diet is one of the most important parts of managing diabetes for your child. High or low blood sugar levels can cause so many issues. So, it is important that they pay attention to what they are eating.
For example, carbohydrates and sweet foods can increase your child’s blood sugar. This can make it difficult to manage your child’s diet during parties, holidays, and other fun events.
While you can still eat yummy foods when you have diabetes, you need to make sure you are conscious of how much sugar you are having. You can help your child learn about their diet by planning out meals and snacks to eat throughout the day.
This will help them be more aware of the food that is going into their body.
Next, you want to help your child learn how exercise affects their blood sugar levels. Many people don’t realize that exercise can lower your blood sugar. This means that it is important to properly monitor your levels of blood sugar when you exercise.
If your levels are too high, you can exercise to help lower them! If they are too low, it is important to exercise less and to find ways to increase your blood sugar.
By incorporating a diet and exercise plan into your life, you can help your child learn to manage their diabetes.
3. Prepare For Specific Events
As part of your diabetes management, you want to make sure you prepare your child for the different events they will be going to. For example, if your child goes to school, you want to be sure that they know how to manage their diabetes in this different situation. This includes knowing when to eat snacks, how to administer insulin, and more.
If your child is going to an after-school event or a party with their classmates, you want to make sure there is a plan in place for this specific situation. This can help them know what supplies to pack, when to eat, and more.
Whether the events include school activities, spending time with friends, or even family vacations, you want to make sure your child has a plan to manage their diabetes in any situation.
4. Create an Emergency Plan
There are many potential emergency situations that can arise if your child has type 1 diabetes or type 2 diabetes. This is why it is vital that you create an emergency plan.
First, you want to make sure your child always has an adult nearby that is trained to help them. If your child goes to school, make sure your teacher or the school nurse can recognize the warning signs of an emergency situation.
You can write out an emergency care plan to give to your child’s friends, coaches, or other supervisors. Having a written list of what to do in an emergency situation can potentially save your child’s life. You can also make sure they have your contact information if something goes wrong.
Some common diabetic emergency situations include blood sugar that is too high or too low. By constantly monitoring blood sugar, you can prevent many of these issues.
5. Help Them Manage Their Feelings
Finally, you want to make sure you help your children learn how to manage their feelings. Learning how to adjust to a diabetes diagnosis can be challenging for your child. There are many things that they need to learn and change.
While this can be very difficult, you want to make sure your child knows that it is okay to feel upset. By acknowledging your child’s feelings, you can help them learn to overcome their difficulties and find strength.
Unfortunately, you may also find that your child may be bullied because of their diagnosis. By helping your child find ways to cope with bullying, you can help them improve their social life and build independence as they learn more about diabetes self-management.
Learn More About How You Can Help Your Child Manage Diabetes Today
Learning how to manage diabetes can be taxing for you and your child. There are many things that you need to consider. These range from the types of food they can eat and how they can attend other events. However, there are things that can help you learn to manage diabetes more effectively.
Are you looking for products that can help you? Ingredia USA can help! We have high-quality dairy ingredients that help people promote better health in the United States.
If you are interested in learning more about our products and promoting better health, contact our team today!
Find out about stress and weight management in pets and treatment advice with the 4th episode of LacTalk Pet!
Dr. Lisa Radosta is a Board certified veterinary behaviorist, who practices at the Florida Veterinary Behavior Service clinic.
The right information and products can reduce stress and improve our pets’ quality of life. To discover the kinds of research and other information that may provide a healthier and longer life, just contact us today!
Did you know that 1 in 10 people have diabetes in the United States? Diabetes is way more common than you might think. While this number may be shocking, even more people are at risk of getting diabetes.
Approximately 1 in 3 people in the United States are prediabetic. Many people don’t even know they are prediabetic and continue to live their lives without realizing they are putting themselves at risk.
Have you ever wondered, am I at risk for diabetes?
If you are at risk for diabetes, then your nutrition should be one of the most important aspects of your life. Here is our nutritional guide for prediabetes.
What Does It Mean To Have Prediabetes?
Diabetes is a chronic disease where your body has trouble regulated your blood sugar levels due to inadequate amounts of insulin production, leading to high blood sugar levels and several other health complications.
There are two types of diabetes that you can have. Type 1 diabetes is when the body’s immune system destroys insulin-producing cells, leaving the body without insulin. This type of diabetes requires insulin shots to regulate blood sugar.
Type 2 diabetes is where the body produces insulin but is unable to use it efficiently. Type 2 diabetes is commonly treated with nutritional and lifestyle changes.
If you are prediabetic, that means you are at risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Here are some risk factors of having prediabetes:
Overweight
Family history of diabetes
Not enough exercise
Over 45 years old
If you had gestational diabetes during pregnancy
If anything previously mentioned applies to you, you may be at risk for diabetes. Healthy eating and a healthy lifestyle could be what you need to prevent developing type 2 diabetes.
Foods To Eat When At Risk For Diabetes
Prediabetics should avoid high sugar and high carb content in their food to regulate their blood sugars. Since obesity makes your risk of developing diabetes greater, it’s important to eat healthily and get enough exercise.
Here is a nutritional guide for food choices for people at risk with diabetes:
Seafood is a great option for someone who is at risk of diabetes. A great way to level your blood sugar levels is to eat protein, and fish is a great source of lean protein.
It will also give you important nutrients and healthy fats that can help regulate your blood sugar. Since it is lean meat, it will help you stay at a healthy weight.
Leafy green vegetables are another great food to eat for a healthy lifestyle for a prediabetic. They are low in calories and carb, so that they won’t affect your blood sugar levels drastically.
They also have essential nutrients that can help prevent heart disease, which can be a health complication caused by diabetes.
Greek Yogurt is another great food option. Greek yogurt has the protein you need to regulate your blood sugar, and it also has probiotics which have been known to help with heart disease as well.
Just make sure you get a Greek yogurt that doesn’t have a lot of added sugar. There are plenty of options out there to choose from!
Some fruits are high in glycemic value, but berries are a great option for prediabetics. They are high in antioxidants and low in sugar. They will make a great topper for your Greek yogurt!
Other foods like nuts or nut butters, seeds, beans, lentils, avocados, squash, garlic, extra virgin olive oil, broccoli, and eggs are also great foods to promote healthy eating.
The main goal is to keep your sugar and carb intake low and your protein, vitamin, and healthy fat intake high. This can give you a foundation to make a personalized meal plan for your healthy lifestyle!
What To Avoid When At Risk For Diabetes
If you are at risk of diabetes, it means that your blood sugar levels are higher than they should be, but not quite at diabetic levels. This means that you can prevent diabetes by keeping your sugars low and living a healthy lifestyle.
To do so, you should avoid eating certain foods and doing certain things.
First, it is important to talk to a therapist or doctor if you are feeling stressed. Not only can stress cause you to overeat and binge on junk food, but it can also affect your overall health.
Next, you should try to avoid the following foods:
Highly processed refined carbs, like white bread, pastries, and pasta. These foods are considered high-glycemic and will make your blood sugar rise.
Sugary or alcoholic beverages. Both of these drinks will give you no nutritional value, boost your blood sugar, and can make you put on weight.
Highly sweetened snacks or desserts. If you are craving something sweet, try to eat something like fruit or something naturally sweetened. Added sugar is definitely something a prediabetic should avoid.
Live A Healthy Lifestyle
Being at risk for diabetes can sound scary, but it doesn’t have to be! You can prevent developing diabetes by living a healthy lifestyle, healthy eating, and avoiding foods that could raise your blood sugar.
Eating foods high in healthy fats, protein, vitamins, and low in refined sugars and carbs may be tricky at first, but there are many recipes and options to choose from to make your personalized healthy eating meal plan.
Keeping your mind healthy is just as important as keeping your body healthy, so make sure to talk to your doctor about your mental health while dealing with prediabetes.
If you want to learn more about blood sugar management, healthy lifestyles or want to read more insightful articles, check out more posts on our blog!
Find out about stress and gastrointestinal disease in pets and treatment advice with the 3rd episode of LacTalk Pet!
Dr. Lisa Radosta is a Board certified veterinary behaviorist, who practices at the Florida Veterinary Behavior Service clinic.
The right information and products can reduce stress and improve our pets’ quality of life. To discover the kinds of research and other information that may provide a healthier and longer life, just contact us today!
This website is intended to provide information about Ingredia’s bioactive ingredients to food supplement professionals and health professionals and is not designed for the general public.
As our ingredients are marketed in a large number of countries, it is the responsibility of each of our customers to ensure that the use of the ingredient and any claim made in the labeling or advertising of the ingredient comply with the applicable rules and regulations.
