Optimal Physical Health

Physical health, continued from yesterday. Physical health consists of several things, and I personally think our physical health is also dependent upon our spiritual and mental health. Diet, exercise, sleep, fun, balance among activities, & attitude all contribute to our physical health.

Diet: New research from the Archives of Neurology reveals that the Mediterranean diet reduces a person's risk of experiencing dementia, as well as slowing the progression of dementia. Eating lots of vegetables, fruits, nuts and legumes (beans & peas), with limited meat and alcohol reduces developing cognitive impairment by 28%. It also lowers the risk for fully developed Alzheimer's disease by 48%. It is certainly worth trying this diet to sustain health and to even possibly restore health.

Exercise: I try to exercise for 1 hour every day. This includes riding my bike, walking/jogging, snow shoeing, cross country skiing, hiking, kayaking. I also include weight lifting 3 times per week. Adding weight lifting has dramatically helped eliminate shoulder pain by increasing strength. Stretching every day has dramatically helped with low back and hip flexibility and comfort.

Sleep: According to James Maas, professor of psychology at Cornell University and author of Power Sleep, 3 out of 4 Americans are sleep deprived. Most people need about 8 hours of sleep and are getting just 6.5 hours. Maas says that someone who gets 6 hours of sleep a night has worse mental clarity than someone who has had 8 hours of sleep and has blood alcohol levels that would equal or exceed those for driving while drunk (0.10 bal). Because someone with dementia with Lewy bodies usually has sleep disorders with the disease, Mayo Clinic recommended Dwane take melatonin every night, starting with 1 pill and going up to 4 pills as needed to alleviate the dangerous acting out of dreams.