Drum – 08 August 2019

TEXT

BY

HELEN

FOSTER

©BAUERSYNDICATION.COM.AU/MAGAZINEFEATURES.CO.ZA

essupportyourentirebody

ndtoneglectthemuntilthey

atsortofshapeareyourbones

Canyoustandononelegformorethan

30 seconds?

Yes:1 point

No:0 points

If youcanit meansyourcoremusclesare

strong,whichreducesyourriskofdevel-

opingbackpaininthefuture.If youcan’t,

keeppractisingstandingononelegas

thisstrengthensandtrainsyourcore.

Doyouwakeupwithachesanywherein

yourbody?

Yes:0 points

No:1 point

Ifyoudon’twakeuppain-free,check

yoursleepposition.Ideally,youshould

sleepwitha straightspine,andthebest

positionforthistendstobeonyour

back.Anoldmattresscouldalsobethe

es support your entire body – problem.Morningpaincouldalsosig-

nifya problemsuchasarthritis,somake

anappointmenttoseeyourGP.

Doyoudomorethan 30 minutesof

exercisefivetimesa week?

Yes:1 point

No:0 points

Studiesindicatethatexerciseiseven

moreimportantthandietforhealthy

bones.ResearchersinFinlandhave

foundthatwhilecalciumsimplystops

uslosingbone,exerciseactuallyhelps

buildmore.

Whenyousitinyourofficechair,areyour

kneeslevelwithyourhips?

Yes:1 point

No:0 points

Incorrectsittingis oneofthemajorcaus-

esofbackpain.Whenyourkneesaren’t

levelwithyourhipswhenyou’resitting,

youroundyourlowerback– andthis

increasestheriskofbackpain.

Fatigue,skinbreakoutsandloweredim-

munity are linked to an underperforming

digestive system. How’s yours doing?

Do you poo at least once a day?

Yes: 1 point

No: 0 points

While what’s normal differs from person

toperson,havinga bowelmovementat

leastoncea dayisa signofa healthy

digestivesystem.

Doyouregularlysufferfrombadbreath,

burping,bloatingorbadwind?

Yes:0 points

No:1 point

Theseareallsignsthatsomethingis

wrongwithyourdiet.If you’renotsure

whatyouneedtochange,seeyourGP.

Doyoufinishyourmealsin 10 minutes

orless?

Yes:0 points

No:1 point

Eatingquicklyincreasesyourriskof

gastricproblemssuchasrefluxby20%.

Also,whenyoueatfastyoutendtoswal-

lowfoodinlargechunkswhichyour

bodycanfindhardtohandle.

Doyoucheckwhat’sinthebowlbefore

youflush?

Yes:1 point

No:0 points

Anygastroenterologistwilltellyou

there’smeritinmakingthisa habit.Any

changein bowel habitsshould be

checkedout.

Physical

activity –

weight-bearing

exercise in

particular– helps

buildbones

Ifyou’renotfeelinggoodemotionally,it’s

likelyyourbodywon’tfeelgoodeither.

Outof10,doyouscoreabovefiveforfeel-

inghappyandunderfiveforstress,anger

orlonelinessrightnow?

Yes:1 point

No:0 points

Wasit easytoanswerthisquestion?The

betteryougetatassessingyourfeelings,

thebetteryou’llbeabletotacklenegative

emotionsbeforetheyaffectyourhealth.

Whenyouthinkaboutthepastdoyoucom-

monlyusethewords“ifonly”orifit’sthe

future,doyousay“whatif”?

Yes:0 points

No:1 point

Thesephrasesareassociatedwithfeeling

anxious.Trytolivemoreinthepresent

andappreciatewhatyouhavenow.

Doyouregularlyflyoffthehandlewhen

someoneasksyoutodosomethingsmall?

Yes:0 points

No:1 point

If youansweredyes,it’sprobablya sign

you’reundertoomuchstress.

Canyouquicklywritedownfivegoodthings

thatoccurredinthepastday?

Yes:1 point

No:0 points

Thefasteryoucandothisexercise,the

betteryouareatlookingforthepositive

inlife.Practisemakesperfectwiththis

exercise,sotryit daily.

HOWDIDYOUSCORE?

S7 orunder:Oops!You’vegotsome

worktodoonyourgeneralhealth.

Lookatwhereyouscoredtheleast

andchecktheadviceinthatsection

forwaystoimprovethings.

S8-15:You’redoingprettywellbut

somethingismissing,solookforthe

patternsintheanswerswhereyou

didn’tscorepoints.Isyournutrition

oranotherpartofyourlifeletting

youdown?It’stimetofocusonthese

areas.

S 16 ormore:You’resuper-healthy

• welldoneandkeepitup!Findways
  toboostyourhealthevenmore.

YOUR DIGESTIVE HEALTH

YOUREMOTIONAL

HEALTH

Yourbone

butwete

ache.Wha

in?

Can youst

Your bone

YOUR BONE AND JOINT

HEALTH

http://www.drum.co.za 8 AUGUST 2019 | (^37)
HEALTH