By Margaret Oraza
Certain things are considered to be healthy or unhealthy. Being healthy does not require much from the individual but it seems the hardest things to do are the things we consider to be little.
Eating of good food especially fruits, helps in making us stay healthy but how many people have taken their time to practice this? Some prefer taking things like meat pies, doughnuts, pizza, shawarma or other pastries and sometimes even cakes, instead of fruits that are more beneficial. We also tend to forget that these things contain fats, that when consumed in large quantities affect the body.
Some people would want to consume boiled or roasted yam as breakfast, pounded yam as lunch and porridge yam or still pounded yam as dinner, this food can only provide energy but cannot build the body because these are starchy foods.
Lack of income leads to poor feeding habits, for instance, since some workers were laid off as a result of COVID-19 and are still trying to get back on their feet, for them to afford good food or fruits might be hard.
Also, prices of food stuff are on the increase. After Christmas celebration last year, it was expected that prices of things, especially food stuff will reduce but things are even now worse. A bottle of palm oil that was sold at N500 is now sold for N700. So how are we expected to feed well? Even the fruits are so expensive, eating good food and fruits is rather said than done.
Exercise is very good for the body. We exercise to keep fit, control our weights, prevent excess weight and help maintain weight loss. It combats health conditions and diseases, improves our immune systems, boost energy for better and promotes better sleep. It can also be fun and social, where you meet new people and make new friends.
Since health is not just limited to the absence of illnesses but entails the mental, social, psychological and physical health status of a person, the way you view yourself will show whether you have a healthy self image or an unhealthy one.
Psychology has to do with the state of mind of an individual and how it affects that individual. When someone has a problem with the mind, the person is said to be sick and the attention of a psychiatrist is needed. This self view is very important because it is the value you place on yourself that will show how you treat yourself and would want others to treat you. Self love is very important, it makes you exercise your full strength and bring out the best in you.
Sleep is another aspect that can never be overlooked. It is during sleep that most of the organs in the body have rest. When sleep is tempered with for any reason, it affects the health of the individual.
Sometimes parents even go to the extent of making their kids watch cartoons or poems to fall asleep, this is wrong because it stops the development of their brains, affects their sleep quantity and quality and due to radiations, they have greater risk of having health issues, not only children but adolescents also have this habit of chatting, socializing or surfing the internet before going to bed, sometimes these eat up their sleeping time and prevent them from a good sleep which is wrong.
Sleep that is deprived is also dangerous to one’s health and can lead to stress, fatigue, making you lazy, less energized and also causes headache, so it is advised you have good sleep. It’s not how long you sleep but how good the quality of your sleep is, for this reason keep your phones at a distance to avoid disturbance.
In this country, if crude oil was replaced by agriculture, we would have had better food and fruits to eat and lots of self employed citizens. Notwithstanding, the government can ensure that prices of food stuff reduce by ensuring that these food stuff are available.
While exercising, also remember that the food you consume matters alot. If you are exercising to maintain weight loss, try not to take same quantity of food you were taking, avoid fatty foods if not, your exercises will be a waste.
Never abuse the purpose of exercising, there is time for everything. Some young folks go to the gym just to attract the opposite sex thereby, losing the purpose of their exercise, you can get to know someone better after you are done with your exercise, not during your exercise.
Maintain a healthy self esteem, image and respect, respect others because respect is reciprocal but most importantly, have self love. It is said that if you don’t love yourself, nobody will love you. Spend time in taking care of yourself and also value yourself, this makes you glow, radiate and beautiful.
As time goes on in life, it is advised that one goes for regular medical checks, especially now that there is COVID-19. Also, remember to take the preventive measures against it, for prevention is better than cure.
But all these still require money. We need good jobs and social amenities, for us to be able to maintain our personal health.
