As it is commonly defined, health is the total wellbeing of a human being. By claiming health is the total wellbeing of a human being, it is meant that the health of an individual cannot be evaluated based on one aspect of such a person’s life but all. These aspects are made up of the physical, the social as well as the emotional parts of man. Hence, health encompasses the structural and emotional composition of an individual; It does not merely denote a lack of infirmity. [1]
To live a fulfilling life, one must be perfectly healthy. In other words, one must be in a totally and comprehensively sound across the physical, social and emotional ramifications. People who live comprehensive healthy lifestyles are often in a positive mental state that is often termed as positive psychology. There are certain habitual actions that can be classified as traits of positive psychology such that anyone who exhibits them cannot only be sure to live a life that is healthy, and in longevity. But one that is less prone to ailment or contagion. [1] Positive psychology traits include eating whole food, plant-based diet, active engagement in physical activities amongst many others. All these traits will be explained below.
HowCanOneLiveaHealthyLifestyle?
As explained earlier, positive psychology traits take various forms, although the end result is that an individual who exhibits them gets to live a better and more rewarding life. Other things also contribute to a healthy lifestyle. They are as follows.
The consumption of organic, plant-based diet has been reportedly and factually proven to contain loads of health benefits. This is, in fact, one of the many reasons why many people are now opting for veganism. [2] Eating whole food lowers the cholesterol level of an individual. This is why people who eat whole meal are less prone to obesity than those who feed on unwholesome diet without restraint. When compared to an individual that feeds less on plant-based meal, life-threatening ailments such as cancer, diabetes, heart and respiratory diseases become relatively far-fetched. [3]
Regular physical exercises have a huge role to play in the attainment of positive psychology behavior. Through flexible body movements, the blood circulates better and is evenly distributed across the various parts of the body. Even blood circulation in the body is an impossibility especially for someone who leads a sedentary lifestyle, fixed on a chair or someone prone to unusual body positioning. Proper blood circulation optimizes brain function and makes the heart more reliable. [4]
Another way of living a life with minimal health issues is by engaging in positive psychology activities. One of such activities include meditation. This reduces burdensome stress, improves cognitive capacity and enables better attention overall.
HealthBenefitsofHavingPositivePsychologyHabits
An individual who lives his or her life with habitual positive lifestyle has a lot to gain and nothing to lose. The most certain thing is that such a person is exempt from suffering what is called Lifestyle Related Diseases, often abbreviated as LRDs. [1] LRDs include Obesity, Diabetes and many others aforementioned. This disease usually arises when someone lives a life that is incompatible and completely opposite to what it takes to sustain a healthy living.
An individual with positive psychology habits is often compensated with long life. This is the return on investment for healthy living.
CONCLUSION
It is becoming increasingly difficult to eat, act and live healthy in this time and age. The abundance of junk food, the continuous invention and of robots with that can perform basic human duties has made humans increasingly indolent. As fascinating as these and other things are, they are more detrimental to human health than beneficial. Living a comprehensive lifestyle in this era is difficult but not impossible. It takes eating healthy, regular exercising, the habitual incorporation of positive psychology traits to achieve. A healthy lifestyle becomes less of a pipe dream once these are done.
REFERENCES
Liana S. Lianov et al., PositivePsychologyinLifestyleMedicineandHealthCare:StrategiesforImplementation,American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine, 2019; 1-7, https://doi.org/10.1177/1559827619838992
Cynthia R., et al., Investigationoflifestylechoicesofindividualsfollowingavegandietforhealthandethicalreasons, Appetite, 2015; 3-19 http://dx.doi.org/doi:10.1016/j.appet.2015.02.026.
Crawford, J. R. et al., TheDepressionAnxietyStressScales(DASS):533Normativedataandlatentstructureinalargenon-clinicalsample. Brit J Clin 534 Psychol, 2003; 111–131. doi:10.1348/014466503321903544
Craig W. J. et al., PositionoftheAmericanDieteticAssociation:530Vegetariandiets. J Am Diet Assoc, 2009; 1266-1282. doi:10.1016/j.jada.2009.05.027
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