Health

One of the most practical things anyone can do is keep themselves as healthy as possible. Illness and injury cost a lot in terms of treatment and time lost from work. Also, as I have learned, problems you have when younger, injuries and sicknesses alike, come back to haunt you as you age.

Of course, you cannot control everything and all of us will, here and there, get sick or injure ourselves, but, you can minimize those incidents without not too much effort. First let me say that I, in no way, think that people should obsess over health. That can be worse, All you have to do is use a bit of sense.

If you are doing any sort of work, follow basic safety rules and read and follow the instructions an every tool you use, especially power tools. This means wearing safety glasses, appropriate gloves and masks. It means not standing on the top steps of ladders and unplugging power tools before you do maintenance on them. It means using chemicals only as directed and measuring carefully. In short, do all of the things I was brought up ignoring. Back in my younger days, it was somehow considered unmanly to take safety precautions. Guys ( not many women did these things back in the old less enlightened day) cut wood with no protection and many, like me breathed in mountains of toxic sawdust and spent much time washing that dust out of our eyes. No one measured chemicals. In fact, if the directions called for 6oz, we generally made that 8, because more must be better, right? Well it isn't as we learned when we sloshed caustic cleaners on ourselves or had acids over react and foam up all over our clothes. We were idiots and it is somehow miraculous that some of us are still around.

Diet is vital to health.  That is obvious but, having worked in a school cafeteria and a semi-fast food restaurant, I can tell you that we still eat foolishly. At school, when we served nachos, we always also offered vegetables. We wasted our time with that but, what is worse, the majority of the kids did not even want the meat with the nachos. Most just ate chips and cheese, or worse, just chips. At the restaurant, 2 side dishes came with most meals and, very, very often, instead of a vegetable, folks, adults, would order fires and mac & cheese or a double order of fries. Folks, you do not have to be a health fanatic. There is no reason to live on egg whites and wheat grass and, actually, there is plenty of reason not to do that, but you really do need to eat a balanced diet, at least most of the time. Use your head and eat a bit of meat or fish, some veggies, some fruit, and a little bit of pasta, rice, bread. You can indulge yourself here and there with no problem as long as you get right back to basics. Also, since none of us are perfect, taking a decent 1-a-day multiple vitamin is likely a good move.

Get your sleep. How much? Well, honestly, that's hard to say. Doctors seem to disagree. I have known folks who needed at least 8 hours a night and others who did great on 4. All I can say is, find out what suits you. Sleep as much as it takes to wake up rested, no more and no less, but make sure you sleep enough for you.

The human body has to move about. Exercise is vital but, you do not need to spend hours in a gym lifting ridiculous amounts of weight, nor do you need to run for miles or waste hours on a treadmill. Walking at a good brisk pace for a half hour a day will do fine. If, for some reason you want to build muscle, carry something when you walk. Stop and think; for millennia, our ancestors walked and carried things and were reasonably lean and muscular. Why should we need special equipment and personal trainers. Also, do some house and yard work. Working around your home or in a garden works muscles you may not use a lot and will certainly give your body a good stretch. By the way, frequent stretching is great; just watch a dog or cat when they get up from a nap and stretch yourself like they do. Exercise is a must, but you absolutely do not need to overdo it.

Be moderate in your personal habits. Having written that, I realize that is pretty vague, so let me be specific. Do not over do with any chemicals you put in your body. Too much of anything, be it coffee, tobacco, alcohol or marijuana, is bad, but there is no reason you have to completely abstain. I would emphatically urge you to abstain from any of the more serious drugs. There is no safe level of amphetamine, cocaine, or heroin use, and, personally, I would recommend that you reconsider that marijuana use (unless for legitimate medical reasons). Weed is not seriously harmful to the body but, contrary to what some say it does mess with the day to day functioning of your mind when used too often, If you just have to smoke the stuff, make it minimal and certainly do not smoke every day. Trust me, I know the subject from much personal experience.

Basically, all the keys to good health simply involve common sense and moderation. Use both and then don't worry. A last note: I have never been much for doctors but, if you are having any persistent problem or any sudden change in your health that you cannot explain, get yourself to a doctor immediately. It is far easier for them to treat your problem before it gets out of hand. Stay healthy