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You are here: Home / Archives for Lifestyle / Health

Finding Focus for Your Life

December 28, 2017 By Admin Leave a Comment

What is Your Focus

What is your focus?.  Where do you place your mind and the power of your thoughts? Do you feel fulfilled or depleted by what your daily activity demands of your attention? Do you engage in concentrated work or multitask?  The object of your focus and strength of focus can be related to your overall state of health.

Focus on Age

Focusing you attention is a valuable skill.  Have you ever wondered why in college you could study while listening to music but now you need quiet to concentrate or read? You might have guessed that our ability to focus declines with age.

But you don’t have to be over-the-hill to notice a difference. In fact, according to a study at Simon Frazer University in British Columbia, the processing speed of our brains begins to decline at an earlier age, about 24. Along with this processing decline comes a a reduced ability to mange disruptions and switch from one task or focus to another. (see, multi-tasking can make you less productive!)

In the Focus Zone

The ability to perform deep work, without losing focus, even amidst distractions is a skill of great value for the future.  The distracting world we live in with beeps and buzzes, chirps and jingles, music and motion is likely to demand more of our attention as technology expands into more areas of our lives. In contrast, engaging in a cognitively demanding task can be more satisfying than jumping from task to task such as answering the phone and doing emails, according to Cal Newport a computer science professor at Georgetown University and author of Deep Work.  People seem happier when they are engaged in sustained focus. This used to be called “in the zone”. Likewise, Newport says, “A life defined by fragmented attention can produce exhaustion and anxiety.”

Focus on Health

It is a possibility that constantly taking in small bits of information at a time can make it harder to consume large pieces of information. With the prospects of an even more distracting future quite high, it is up to you to be aware of your lifestyle, environment and what you do with your attention. You might consider living a bit more analog.

What goes up must come down according to an age old adage. After the expansive growth of rock, metal, industrial, rap and other electric music, the concept of “unplugged’ acoustic music rose in popularity. After to boom of cell phones and texts the concept of a vacation from technology became vogue. After generations of children becoming more engaged in techno gadgets and devices, Silicon Valley mothers began raising their children low tech. This trend continues as Silicon Valley parents now say, The Future Is Experiences First, Screens Second. Even Bill Gates and Steve Jobs raised their children tech-free.

Focus on You

Because the ability to maintain focus declines with age, you may wonder if there is something you can do to keep your mind in shape.  There is good news for folks currently in their 50’s and 60’s. In general they are motivated to keep their brains working well and staying focused. For most of their lives they engaged in deep focus and they can regain their ability to focus quicker than those who are younger and grew up in environments with constant distraction. This is good news for those who want to keep on working in a business world that can be age sensitive.

Improve Your Focus

There are six suggestions that an article in the December 2017 AARP Bulletin provides.

  1. Read a novel– According to a study at Emory University in Atlanta, the MRI scans of subject who read at night, reavealed increased connectivity in the language area of the brain. These changes persisted for 5 days after completing the book!
  2. Play an instrument or meditate or write uninterrupted for 30 minutes –According to Harvard professor Joe DeGutis, “Focusing on a single, complex task improves your ability to focus on other tasks.” Making this a habit can help you get into a “relaxed focused state for other activities.”
  3. 3. Work in the morning –Participants age 60-82 performed better in the morning than afternoon, according to a study at Rotman Research Institute.
  4.  Learn a language –Bilingual speakers are able to maintain focus and attention than monolinguals, according to research at University of Birmingham in England
  5. Chew gum — A test of randomly recalled numbers revealed that those who chewed gum responded more quickly and accurately than tose who did not chew gum, according to a study in Cardiff University in Wales.
  6. Volunteer –In a volunteer program where older adults mentored children, age-related brain shrinkage stopped and in fact some brains grew slightly according to Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health research.

 

Filed Under: Health Tagged With: age, analog, attention, brain, deep work, focus, Technology

Food as Medicine

March 12, 2017 By Admin Leave a Comment

Food as Medicine for Health

Do you eat to live or live to eat?

Back at the turn of the last century, when industrialization was just beginning to rapidly influencing  the lifestyles of people in America, people ate to live. People worked their family farms;. This meant giving attention to seasons, growing the food they would eat, caring for their farm animals with reverence. Their health depended upon the nutrition in the foods they grew, essentially, using food as medicine – largely preventative medicine.

Today what is old is new! Get up to pace with the return of cultivating health.

Why did people pre early 1900’2 eat bacon, eggs and milk for breakfast? Why did the eat steak and potatoes? We could say they “lived” on these foods. This is what they had to eat, there were virtually no processed foods.

Why did they enjoy these now more often forbidden foods and remain healthy, strong and mentally clear to ripe old ages?

Some say that environment is a big part of the issue. Environment in the world, in the soil, in the factories and in our bodies. What does that mean? Well one example may be the development of super-bugs during the innovative times of scientific advancement of products and means to kill bugs.  Everything is more sterile and clean than ever, yet the bus, pests, viruses and bacteria are more virulent than ever.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Health Tagged With: cancer, food, Health, Medicine

Holistic Oral Care Basics

January 14, 2017 By Admin Leave a Comment

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Filed Under: Health Tagged With: holistic dental care, holistic oral care, oral care, oral self care

Joy of Taste

January 7, 2017 By Admin Leave a Comment

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Filed Under: Health Tagged With: miracle berry, miracle berry farm, miracle fruit, miracle fruit beery, miracle fruit farm, Tietig brothers

Exercise for Better Vision

January 6, 2017 By Admin Leave a Comment

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Filed Under: Health Tagged With: clear vision, eye exercises, improve vision, see clearer, see clearly

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The Story of Nurses Moving Forward

Sparked by a conversation between a diversely seasoned nurse and a nursing student that lead to more exciting chatter with other nursing students and colleagues. Then the realization that many nurses were asking the same questions:

  • ~ Why aren’t there any jobs?
  • ~ What’s happening in nursing?
  • ~ What can I do if I can’t get two (recent) years med-surg experience first?
  • ~ Not working as a nurse for 5 years negates my prior 15 active years, so I am not a nurse any more?
  • ~ Don’t we need more nurses?

The exploration and research that followed, lead to The Big Question!

“WHAT’S GOING ON IN NURSING & WHY DON”T NURSES KNOW?“

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