How much should you eat? How many spoons of sugar should you put in your tea? One, two or three glasses of alcohol per evening? How long can you worry and be angry without hurting yourself? Scientists have counted everything.
We know perfectly well that there is no single norm for everyone. Eight glasses of water a day, seven hours of sleep are not instructions to follow, but just guidelines that may or may not work. Because we are too different, and each needs an individual approach. Nevertheless, thanks to the efforts of researchers and doctors, we know about the “golden mean” – about how much you need to eat, drink, sleep, spend time at the computer, so that it does not harm our health.
Sleep
Seven or eight hours is enough for an adult to get enough sleep. Sleeping less can be more serious than being tired during the day and yawning all the time.
According to a study published in the journal Occupational and Environmental Medicine , if you stay awake for more than 19 hours straight, you feel about the same mental fatigue as when you are drunk. Regular sleep deprivation increases the risk of developing cardiovascular disease and contributes to the development of obesity. However, if you sleep too much, you are in the same danger.
Sleep researcher and professor at Brigham Young University in Utah, Daniel Kay, argues that if you don’t get one night’s sleep, nothing bad will happen – the body will find an opportunity to recover. The main thing is not to abuse it. If you notice that your sleep pattern is disrupted and it is increasingly difficult for you to fall asleep before two or three in the morning, try to set the alarm at the same time every day, even on weekends.
Drink
Alcohol is one of the most popular topics of controversy among both those who are trying to adhere to a healthy lifestyle and among scientists. At first glance, everything is pretty simple: the less alcohol you drink, the better for you.
“But the interesting thing is,” says Tim Nyami of Boston Medical Center. “When scientists study the effects of alcohol, for example, on the liver (the effect, as you understand, negative), they note that a small amount of alcohol reduces stress levels and helps to reduce the risk of heart disease, stroke and diabetes.”
What does “small amount of alcohol” mean? The US Nutritional Guidelines, for example, define this as one glass of wine a day (roughly 100-150 grams). It is believed that a glass of wine will not do any tangible harm to the body, but it will help reduce stress levels a little.
What about coffee?
On average, if there are no specific contraindications, a person can drink up to 165 milligrams of “liquid caffeine” a day, according to a study published in the journal Food and Chemical Toxicology . That’s about the same amount in a tall- sized cup of Starbucks coffee . But the department for sanitary supervision over the quality of food and medicine generally speaks of the rate of 400 milligrams per day, the main thing is not at one time. By the way, a cup of black tea contains from 14 to 77 milligrams of caffeine, in a glass of cola – about 30-45.
Get angry
It’s good to be angry. Rather, not even get angry, but let all your negative emotions out and not “bury” them deep inside yourself. But you need to do it right.
“Pay attention to the duration, frequency, intensity and how you feel after the outbursts , ” explains Howard Kassinov , director of the Institute for the Study of Anger and Aggression at Hofstra University in New York. – These are four main criteria. The main thing is that anger should not get out of your control, remember that you always decide when to stop.
It is best to “splash out” emotions somewhere in the forest or on a sports field. And pay attention to what you feel after: you should not have feelings of resentment, anger or rage. “
If you feel your anger is spiraling out of control, use a simple technique. Breathe in slowly through your nose for a count of six. Then exhale in nine counts. Pause and repeat ten more times.
Worry
Let’s get it straight away. It’s okay to worry. You should not scold yourself for this, and you should not set yourself the task of not worrying at all. “Excitement helps us achieve our goals, doesn’t miss deadlines, and generally disciplines us,” explains Katty Sweeney , professor of psychology at the University of California.
– But it is very important to understand that when you worry too much, the danger to your health exceeds all the positive aspects of stress. How to understand when it is time to do something and, perhaps, even consult a specialist? The main feature is this. Anxiety becomes a disease when the intensity of the anxiety experienced does not match the situation. “
Check phone
On average, a person checks their phone (messages, mail, likes) every 15 minutes. This is data from a California State University study. “And that’s a lot,” says researcher Larry Rosen, author of Distracted Mind : Ancient Brains in a High-Tech World, about how the brain “behaves” in modern reality.
– It’s not just that, looking at the phone so often, we pay less attention to people around us, we communicate less offline. The problem is that spending so much time on the phone makes us less and less alone with our thoughts. And these are the moments when ideas come to mind. It is impossible to be a creative person if you look at your phone screen all the time and your brain is busy with anything but calm thoughts. “
Today it is considered the norm that a person should check their phone on average every half hour. If you think you are doing this more often, try setting up ” phone- free zones” for yourself first . For example, never sit down to lunch with your phone in hand, lock your smartphone in a locker at the gym and do not go to it until after your workout.
Add sugar
Sugar is a topic no less controversial and certainly no less popular than alcohol. It is believed that only less than ten percent of your calories should come from “added” sugar. Moreover, the added one is not only the one that you yourself put in tea or coffee. Added sugar is found in yoghurts, juices, and soda. These are monosaccharides and disaccharides added to food or beverages by the manufacturer of these products. And also saccharides, which are naturally present in honey, syrups or fruit concentrate.
The World Health Organization recommends eliminating added sugar from the diet altogether, while noting that the sugar found in fresh vegetables and fruits and milk can and should be consumed.
This does not mean, of course, that even on your birthday you will have to give up a piece of cake. Just think before drinking it with sweet tea.
Sunbathe
“Even if you only spend a few minutes in direct sunlight during the day from 10 am to 2 pm without using sunscreen, you can seriously damage your skin cells,” said Andrew Alexis, head of the dermatology department at Mount Sinai St … Luke’s in New York. And if you do it all the time, then you significantly increase your chances of getting skin cancer. “
Alexis recommends using creams, lotions and aerosols with a protection level of at least 15, while renewing them every two hours if you are in the sun for a long time. Do not forget about the headdress and are more in the shade. If you are worried that a lack of ultraviolet radiation will affect the content of vitamin D in your body, then know that vitamin is found in food: fatty fish, eggs, dairy products.