Become a Patron!

Jimi's Daily Health Articles

Jimi

Jimi

Diamond Contributor
Member For 5 Years
mail


During this Thanksgiving week I want to share my gratitude with you for being a deeply appreciated and honored part of our community.

Research has shown that gratitude can improve general well-being, increase resilience, strengthen social relationships, and reduce stress and depression.

I started a practice years ago, continued to this day, waking up every morning and going to bed every night thinking of at least a dozen things and people I'm grateful for. It's usually gratitude for my children, my wife, my home, my health, the incredible work I get to do and our community.

I encourage you to not only think of the things you're grateful for this week, but if you don't already, commit to starting the first and last few minutes of every day reflecting on those things and people in your life that you can be grateful for.

Just having access to drinking water, food, clothes on our backs and a roof over our head are all incredible things to be grateful for. There's millions around the world who don't even have these basic necessities.

I want you to know that I am deeply grateful for you and I wish you health and happiness this Thanksgiving week.
 
Jimi

Jimi

Diamond Contributor
Member For 5 Years
Practicing Gratitude on Thanksgiving is A Powerful Action for Health and Happiness

Thanksgiving can be about more that putting up with annoying relatives, gorging on a dead bird, and passing out in a football-enhanced stupor. In fact, Thanksgiving can be an opportunity to practice one of the most powerful health-promoting actions that exist.

Giving thanks.

Gratitude, it turns out, makes you happier and healthier. If you invest in a way of seeing the world that is mean and frustrated, you’re going to get a world that is more mean and frustrating. But if you can find any authentic reason to give thanks… anything at all that you’re grateful for in your life or in the world and put your attention there, an overwhelming body of research indicates you’re going to experience more joy, vitality, and inner peace.

Gratitude doesn’t just make things feel better – it also makes them get better. According to recent research, gratitude is good for your physical, emotional, and mental health. People who express more gratitude have fewer aches and pains, better sleep, and stronger mental clarity.


If Thankfulness Were A Drug…
“If [thankfulness] were a drug,” Dr. P. Murali Doraiswamy, head of the division of biologic psychology at Duke University Medical Center, tells us: “it would be the world’s best-selling product with a health maintenance indication for every major organ system.”

As Dr. Doraiswamy explains, studies have shown how the expression of gratitude leads to measurable effects on multiple body and brain systems.

These include:

  • Mood neurotransmitters (serotonin, norepinephrine)
  • Reproductive hormones (testosterone)
  • Social bonding hormones (oxytocin)
  • Cognitive and pleasure related neurotransmitters (dopamine)
  • Inflammatory and immune systems (cytokines)
  • Stress hormones (cortisol)
  • Cardiac and EEG rhythms
  • Blood pressure, and
  • Blood sugar
Does Gratitude Really Cause Good Fortune?
When I heard all this, I was skeptical. What if people who are fortunate, or who are particularly healthy, just feel more grateful? Does gratitude really cause good fortune, or is it just a byproduct?

The answer surprised me, and it may surprise you, too.

In a study conducted by Robert A. Emmons, Ph.D., at the University of California at Davis and his colleague Mike McCullough at the University of Miami, randomly assigned participants were given one of three tasks. Each week, participants kept a short journal. One group briefly described five things they were grateful for that had occurred in the past week, another five recorded daily hassles from the previous week that displeased them, and the neutral group was asked to list five events or circumstances that affected them, but they were not told whether to focus on the positive or on the negative.

Keep in mind that these groups were randomly assigned and that nothing about their lives was inherently different, other than the journaling they were doing.

The types of things people listed in the grateful group included: “Sunset through the clouds;” “the chance to be alive;” and “the generosity of friends.”

And in the hassles group, people listed familiar things like: “Taxes;” “hard to find parking;” and “burned my dinner.”

After ten weeks, participants in the gratitude group reported feeling better about their lives as a whole and were a full 25 percent happier than the hassled group. They reported fewer health complaints, and they were now exercising an average of 1.5 hours more per week.

In a later study by Emmons, people were asked to write every day about things for which they were grateful. Not surprisingly, this daily practice led to greater increases in gratitude than did the weekly journaling in the first study. But the results showed another benefit: Participants in the gratitude group also reported offering others more emotional support or help with a personal problem, indicating that the gratitude exercise increased their goodwill towards others, or more technically, their “pro-social” motivation.

What’s The Brain Science Behind All This?
Neuropsychologist Rick Hanson puts it this way: “The neurons that fire together, wire together… The longer the neurons [brain cells] fire, the more of them that fire, and the more intensely they fire, the more they’re going to wire that inner strength –- that happiness, gratitude, feeling confident, feeling successful, feeling loved and lovable.”

And what’s going on in the brain leads to changes in behavior. Grateful people tend to take better care of themselves and to engage in more protective health behaviors, like regular exercise and a healthy diet. They’re also found to have lower levels of stress. And lowered levels of stress are linked to increased immune function and to decreased rates of cancer and heart disease.

So it seems, you take better care of what you appreciate. And that extends to your body, and also to the people around you.

Good For Your Relationships
Not only does saying “thank you” constitute good manners, but showing appreciation can also help you win new friends, according to a 2014 study published in Emotion.

The study found that thanking a new acquaintance makes them more likely to seek an ongoing relationship. So whether you thank a stranger for holding the door or you send a quick thank-you note to that co-worker who helped you with a project, acknowledging other people’s contributions can lead to new opportunities.

In a 2012 study conducted by the University of Kentucky, study participants who ranked higher on gratitude scales were found to have more sensitivity and empathy toward other people and a decreased desire to seek revenge.

But What About Tough Times?
As I was learning about this research, I was still a bit skeptical. Life can at times be brutal. Sometimes just surviving can feel like an accomplishment. Can you really feel grateful in times of loss?

Yes, you can.

In fact, findings show that adversity can actually boost gratitude. In a Web-based survey tracking the personal strengths of more than 3,000 American respondents, researchers noted an immediate surge in feelings of gratitude after Sept. 11, 2001.

Tough times can actually deepen gratefulness if we allow them to show us not to take things for granted. Dr. Emmons reminds us that the first Thanksgiving took place after nearly half the pilgrims died from a rough winter and year. It became a national holiday in 1863 in the middle of the Civil War and was moved to its current date in the 1930s following the Depression.

Why would a tragic event provoke gratitude? When times are good, we tend to take for granted the very things that deserve our gratitude. In times of uncertainty, though, we often realize that the people and circumstances we’ve come to take for granted are actually of immense value to our lives.

Robert Emmons, Ph.D., writes: “In the face of demoralization, gratitude has the power to energize. In the face of brokenness, gratitude has the power to heal. In the face of despair, gratitude has the power to bring hope. In other words, gratitude can help us cope with hard times.”

In good times, and in tough times, gratitude turns out to be one of the most powerful choices you can make.

Putting Gratitude To Work For You
If you want to put all this into practice, here are some simple things you can do to build positive momentum:

1) Say Grace: This Thanksgiving, or anytime you sit down to a meal with loved ones, take a moment to go around and invite everyone to say one thing they are grateful for. Even if you eat a meal alone, you can take a moment to give thanks.

2) Keep A Daily Gratitude Journal: This really does work. And yes, there’s an app for that.

3) Share The Love: Make it a practice to tell a spouse, partner or friend something you appreciate about them every day.

4) Remember Mortality: You never know how long you, or anyone you love, will be alive. How would you treat your loved ones if you kept in mind that this could be the last time you’d ever see them?

Thank You
Thank you for reading this. Thank you for being grateful for the blessings and even for the challenges that come your way. When you express gratitude, you make your world, and our whole world, better a
 
Jimi

Jimi

Diamond Contributor
Member For 5 Years
Sleep, health, and attractiveness go hand-in-hand. Getting enough rest contributes to your skin's overall health and appearance.

John Axelsson, of Sweden's Karolinska Institute, in a study published in British Medical Journal said, "Our findings show that sleep-deprived people appear less healthy, less attractive, and more tired compared with when they are well rested."[1]

When you sleep, your body has a chance to rejuvenate itself and work on cellular regeneration. These are crucial steps to slowing down aging and is even more important to your skin and hair.



In the United States, more than 20% of Caucasian adults report not getting enough sleep. Sleep deprivation in other races are as much as 40%.

Sleep deprivation is determined by your pattern of sleep over the course of one month.[2] If you consistently get less than eight hours of sleep or don't achieve "restful" sleep, chances are you're sleep-deprived.

How Chronic Diseases Are Linked to Sleep Loss

Heart disease, diabetes, and obesity have all been linked to chronic sleep loss. "It's no secret that we live in a 24/7 society," says Carl Hunt, MD, director of the National Center on Sleep Disorders Research at the National Institutes of Health.

"People just don't realize how important sleep is, and what the health consequences are of not getting a good night's sleep on a regular basis. Sleep is just as important for overall health as diet and exercise."[3]

Not getting enough rest is so common that we don't typically talk about it to friends and family or to our doctors. Often, you may feel if you can get by on 4 to 6 hours of sleep. In our 24/7 society it's looked at as a badge of honor to sleep as little as possible.

The real story is that every minute spent not getting enough shut eye – you're weakening your immune system. You may also be creating the circumstances that contribute to depression and through it all, your skin is suffering.

How You Sleep is Important

Sleeping on your stomach with your face pressed into your pillow can create premature wrinkles. Try sleeping on your side or your back. If you can't break yourself out of your sleeping position, consider using a silk or satin pillowcase or one made with high thread count fabric.

Changing your sheets regularly is also extremely important.[4] Oils, dirt, and dead skin slough off while you sleep. You don't want to press your sensitive face into that night after night.

Healthy Sleep Habits – On a Schedule

Your body has certain physical, mental, and behavioral patterns it follows every day. This is known as circadian rhythm.

This rhythm is influenced by factors in your body as well as environmental input such as day and night, work schedules that force the body to operate at varying times, and even jet lag.

Disruptions in your circadian rhythm can lead to insomnia, depression, and bipolar disorder.[5]

Giving your body a schedule of rest it can depend will help you mentally and emotionally. Try to go to bed and wake up at the same time daily even on the weekends.

After you've gotten yourself into a regular sleep pattern, consider how you wake up. Using a wake-up light is a gentle easier way of being brought out of sleep than a screaming alarm clock. A wake-up light uses gradually increasing light (some contain nature sounds) to give you the most comfortable way to awaken.

If your desired time for waking is at 7:00 am then the light will start at a low glow at 6:30 am, then gradually brighten until it reaches its brightest point at 7:00 am.

The results of getting into healthy sleep habits will be clearly seen on your gorgeous face and reflected in a healthier and happier you.

To Your Health,
 
Jimi

Jimi

Diamond Contributor
Member For 5 Years
Just a few random thoughts: excuse my spellin

“I believe kids oughta stay kids as long as they can, turn off the screen, go climb a tree, get dirt on their hands.”

“I believe we gotta forgive and make amends, 'cause nobody gets a second chance to make new old friends.”

“I believe that youth is spent well on the young, 'cause wisdom in your teens would be a lot less fun.”

“Positive emotions contribute to important downstream life outcomes, including friendship development, marital satisfaction, higher incomes and better physical health. People who experience frequent positive emotions have even been shown to live longer. Indeed, a recent meta-analysis of nearly 300 findings concluded that positive emotions produce success and health as much as they reflect these good outcomes”.

“I believe if you just go by the nightly news, your faith in all mankind would be the first thing you lose.”





 
Last edited:
Rhianne

Rhianne

Diamond Contributor
Member For 2 Years
ECF Refugee
Jimi said:
Part Two

Fluke? No way. Take the young baby of 4 months (I forget his name but not his appearance). He was bloated (puffy) and plastered with eczema, his brief existence had been a terrible torment. He scratched till he bled. Parents had tried to restrain him but the little mite pulled his limbs free at night and went back to scratching. His sheets were covered in blood every morning.

The hospital had tried to help but there seemed little they could do, since at that time they did not believe in food allergies; “Mumby-jumbo” they called it and sniggered. The child was sent home with steroid creams, which were not helping and I think everyone expected the child to die. The parents were distraught and brought him to me.

Well, we did a food diary: what exactly was the child being fed? There was ONLY ONE repetitious daily food. Milk? Nah, it was potato!

I said it was the number one suspect and to stop him eating any more potato—and be very careful with infant formulas, where it could be hidden.

In the next 48 hours this little lad literally peed himself down to size; 2 or 3 litres of fluid came away through his tiny willy. The bloating vanished. The skin healed and was closed to the outside within 24 hours! It was an instant triumph… EXCEPT! …The parents still couldn’t believe it was potato. So, without telling me, they fed him another meal with potato… you can guess the result. The child’s skin erupted, he tore at it with his fingers and he was covered in blood yet again when I next saw him.

However, the parents were simple and good folk; they owned up to the experiment; everyone was happy I’d nailed the cause; he would never get to eat potato again.

Still thinking it’s rare? Let’s look at a lady who had very bad eczema. Yes, if you consult my writings in detail, you’ll see I have drawn a strong association between eczema and potato. Doctor pseuds call that “anecdotal” and it doesn’t mean anything, they say. Well, it means a lot to me and the torrent of lovely people who came past my desk in those exciting, pioneer years.

Anyway, back to the story. This lady had eczema so bad, she would wake up some days with her pajamas stuck to her. If she tried to peel off the garment, it would strip her skin from the flesh. For occasions like this she was given a special dispensation to just show up at ER, without an appointment, and they would soak her jammies off, clean her up and send her home with some more steroid creams.

Lord knows why: the fact she kept turning up every couple of weeks should have alerted any intelligent doctor to the fact the creams were not working!

Well, you will already have guessed it was potato… and it was. Result: stop eating potato; eczema GONE! Incidentally, potato was the ONLY allergy in that case.

So is it all skin stuff, hives (urticaria), eczema and the like?

No. One lady suffered with extreme depression for over 20 years. That turned out to be potato too. As I was finalizing the test, at the same moment the husband was at home peeling 3 lbs. of potatoes, which they ate every day.

In my writings I talk a lot about the fact that a person tends to get hooked on their allergy foods. It’s an addiction to the very thing that is making them ill.

Yes, she recovered within a week and threw out all her meds.

I had a patient who reacted to a pretty nice vitamin and mineral formula. I took it myself. But she got suicidally depressed. It turned out that potato shavings were the starch used to bind the pills and, yes, she was allergic to potato.

Any more? Yes, hundreds more. Let me just mention a wonderful executive businessman, Ron I think. He had chronic rhinitis; he’d had it for well over twenty years. A test showed a reaction to potato. My first wife and I were both in his presence when he sniffed through his nostrils for the first time in twenty plus years!

That was a smile to remember!

Last quick tip, before I get to the point: many people report having very itchy skin on their hands when they peel raw potatoes. But they eat the potatoes anyway! WHAT? It’s crazy, I know. But people often just don’t think things through: if it’s inflaming your hands, what is it doing to the rest of your body when you swallow it?

So, What Is The Point?
Nothing heavy. I’m just reprogramming my “Diet Wise” book approach and I am going to launch a whole program called “One Diet For Life” (actually OneDiet4Life).

It’s a journey I think everyone should make, at least once in their lifetime. Find out which foods your body likes and which ones your body HATES. You know what to do when you find your bandit foods! I can guide you through this. You’ll love it when it launches.
Click to expand...


Do you eat potato’s at all, Jimi? I hardly ever have them. I like home fries, but I don’t make them anymore. :hug:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

VU Sponsors

Top