The Five Pillars of Health

1. Good Nourishment

• As much as possible, make your food from scratch from locally grown, organically raised produce and livestock. Minimize your intake of heavily processed and junk foods and drinks (read ingredient lists, if there are  many ingredients that are foreign to you, then don’t eat it). Be moderate with sugar, caffeine and alcohol. Avoid artificial sweeteners like aspartame that you will find in diet products.
• Have regular mealtimes. Sit down and do not do anything else while you eat. Try to eat your main meal of the day at lunchtime. Avoid a large meal late at night. And leave a good amount of time between meals, no snacking.
• Drink plenty of fresh filtered water (room temperature or hot) and herbal teas.
• When you’re ill eat very simply – soups and broths are best - and stay hydrated.

2. Good Air or Oxygen.

• Expose yourself to clean, fresh air on a regular basis. Go out in nature.
• Don’t forget to breathe.  During the day, regularly stop your activity for a few minutes of deep diaphragmatic breathing. Inhale by filling from your belly up to your chest. Exhale by letting go from you chest down to your belly.
• Exercise daily in the early morning or evening, but don’t exert too much. You don’t want to feel tired because of your exercise routine.

 
3. Good Rest/Sleep

• Make sure you get good sleep at night.  Have a regular bedtime. Shut off your television or computer in time to avoid over stimulation.
• Take time off work to rest and regenerate.  It will make you be more productive.
• During the day take a short break here and there, to breathe, to catnap, to just be quiet.

4. Good community

• Spend quality time with family and friends, enjoying one another.
• Exercise good judgment in choosing your community.  Look for harmony.
• Communicate. Learn to listen and feel what it must be like to be in the other’s position.

 
5. Positive thoughts

• Have an “Attitude of Gratitude”.
• Realize that every moment offers you the opportunity to make a choice: to be (or act) positive or to be (or act) negative.

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