Many of us might lose hope when it comes to treating or managing our illnesses or conditions, especially if it’s chronic. We get convoluted by so many drugs that most doctors prescribe. But what if there’s a way, something more natural, for us to manage our condition by not only relying on medications?
Hiking Prescription in Scotland
Doctors in Scotland took the advantage of giving “nature prescriptions” as part of addressing the health issues of their patients. The health authorities from Shetland, an island filled with raw and awesome nature in Scotland, took the liberty of letting medical professionals prescribe outdoor activities, such as hiking, walking, cycling, and swimming, alongside traditional health care. These activities have been shown to be an effective healthy supplement for those with high blood pressure, diabetes, anxiety, depression and other chronic illnesses.
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Parkinson’s Disease Prevention by Lifestyle Change
Parkinson’s Disease (PD) has affected many old people, sometimes it’s even inevitable. It’s a degenerative disease that affects the central nervous system and motor functions, creating symptoms such as:
- Stiff muscles
- Difficulty with standing, walking, and other bodily movements
- Involuntary movements
- Rigidity
- Slow shuffling gait
- Difficulty speaking
- Dementia
- Reduced or lost sense of smell
- Reduced facial expression
- Constipation
According to medical studies, some of the factors that causes PD include:
- Gut dysfunction
- Gluten
- Autoimmunity
- Blood sugar problems
- Iron overload
- Circadian disruption
- Stress
- Environmental toxins (pesticides, herbicides, toxic molds, air pollution)
Knowing these causes, we now have an idea on how to make lifestyle changes so we can prevent PD. Here’s how:
- Choose and eat whole foods
- Get enough vitamin D and omega-3
- Give up gluten
- Give keto diet a try
- Take pre- and probiotics
- Get rid of toxins
- Have a regular sleeping pattern
- Turn to greens
- Have regular exercise
- Reduce your stress
- Try light therapy
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Grip Strength Related to Heart Health
When talking about grip strength, it’s not only about fitness or the gym, but it’s also a medical one. Previous research has linked measuring hand grip strength to one’s biological age and with the onset of cardiovascular disease, future disability and death. The research also suggests that people with weaker muscle strength will likely to die sooner if they develop a chronic illness compared to those who have more muscle strength. For us to have stronger muscles, we must do workouts and weight training, eat healthy, nutritious, protein-packed food, and get enough sleep.
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Grip Strength in Old Age Health-Related Quality of Life
Over the years, life expectancy has dramatically increased, thanks to advances in research, medical equipment, new, effective drugs and a number of health alternatives. Hand grip strength has become a popular indicator of physical functioning. A good physical functioning equates to physical well-being; thus, a study was conducted in Austria to determine if the grip strength and social contact has an effect on the quality of life among old people. They used a hand-hold calibrated dynamometer and face-to-face assessment to measure the grip strength.
In the study, they relate hand grip strength and health-related quality of life to age, gender, marital status, living situation, educational level, existing diseases, medications, number of children and grandchildren, contact frequency of relatives and non-relatives. The results showed that men showed higher health-related quality of life in the physical and psychic domain while women exhibited higher scores in the social and environmental domains, and grip strengths decreases as age increases. Also, participants who have high health-related quality of life had a higher socio-economic and demographic status. Though the study should be taken with a grain of salt, it may be a good indicator on the positive effect to an old person’s physical well-being by hand grip strength and social contacts.
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Grip and Forearm Exercises that Work
The stronger our grip strength is, the higher our body and neuromuscular strength and function. That’s why gym-goers and trainers must maximize their grip potential and pack on forearm muscle with heavy pump work.
Here are 5 exercises that work to have a tough grip and well-built forearms.
- Hybrid Hammer Reverse Curl: to develop your brachioradialis, a forearm muscle
- Barbell Suitcase Iso-Hold: to increase body strength from grip and core positions
- Deadlift with Shrug: to build maximum grip and motor strength when carrying heavy loads
- Loaded Hang Iso-Hold: to improve your grip strength
- Trap Bar Farmers Carry: to have long-term orthopedic, functional, and carrying strength
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As we get older, it’s easier for our body to acquire diseases. A lifelong lesson is while we’re still young or still at our peak; we should do our best to keep ourselves healthy and stress-free. Nothing beats having the right life perspective, proper diet, regular exercise, and lifestyle improvement.
