HealthyLife Articles

Tag: tobacco

  • Spend Time With Animals

    Healthylife® QuitWell™

    Part 4

    Man and his dog.

    Spend time with a pet. Volunteer at a shelter. Spend time with a friend or family member’s pet. Go to a pet store, or look into adopting a rescue animal.

    Spending time with a pet can:

    *  Decrease production of cortisol, a stress hormone that can put you on edge and make you ill over time.

    *  Increase serotonin, which helps you feel relaxed and happy.

    *  Help you feel secure. Pets, especially dogs, can love unconditionally and may sense when you need extra support. Some pets are trained to help you manage certain emotions, like anxiety.

    © American Institute for Preventive Medicine

  • Balance Of Choice

    Healthylife® Weigh

    Part 1

    Dumbbells, scale, towel, fruit, BMI body mass index formula rate formula in a board.

    Learn what is pulling you toward your goal and what is holding you back. All thoughts and feelings are valid. Is your goal more important to you than the challenges to achieve it? Are you pursuing this goal just because someone said you “should” do it? If you think of something later, come back to this to add another point.

    Benefits – “Pros” vs Costs-“Cons”

    Making a change.

    Pro Example: I will have more energy.

    Con Example: I won’t be able to have sweets as often as I do now.

    Not changing.

    Pro Example: I can keep all of my current habits.

    Con Example: I could keep putting on more weight.

    © American Institute for Preventive Medicine

  • Quit Smoking

    Healthylife® Weigh

    Part 3

    Hands breaking a cigarette in half.

    Smoking and the use of other tobacco products causes serious harm to the body, including cancer, cardiovascular disease, and emphysema. Smoking can also complicate diabetes and other health conditions.

    If you are smoking, try to quit. Talk to your doctor about tools to help you quit. Call 800-QUIT-NOW (800-784-8669) to talk to someone who can help you quit.

    Quitting smoking may cause some weight gain as your body learns to regulate blood sugar and appetite normally again. Smoking can also be a coping strategy for stress, so you will need to learn new ways to manage stress. It is worth it to quit smoking.

    © American Institute for Preventive Medicine

  • Harmful Hookahs

    WELL-BEING

    Image of a hookah.

    Despite warnings from the CDC that hookah smoking can be just as dangerous as cigarettes, many young adults believe that using the water pipes is not harmful to their health, according to a UCLA School of Nursing study.

    Researchers visited three Southern California hookah lounges and asked patrons between the ages of 18  and 30, “Do you believe smoking a hookah is harmful  to your health?”

    Fifty-seven percent said they thought that it was not. When asked why they thought hookahs were not harmful, 47% said they believed that the smoke gets filtered through water, and 35% said they thought that fruit used to flavor the tobacco would detoxify tobacco’s harmful chemicals. Still others, 16%, said they assumed hookahs are not harmful because the tobacco is not addictive and does not contain nicotine.

    Unfortunately, none of those beliefs is true.

    © American Institute for Preventive Medicine