Our newest client, Nicole Porter is a Wellness Educator, Pilates Instructor, Holistic Nutritionist and Personal Trainer. Yep, she’s very inspiring! Since we’ve joined forces to help her launch her new Wellness Advantage services, targeted at busy, stressed-out professionals (sound familiar?) well … we’ve learned a few things.
Here are just a few of the many wellness facts she’s taught us so far – enjoy!
1. Not Chewing Your Food Properly Can Lead to Allergies. If this makes you pause, consider that the term ‘allergic reaction’ is another way to describe how the immune system overreacts when a foreign substance (ie/a food particle that is too big) enters the blood. A food particle might be too big because it wasn’t broken down into small enough particles during the various stages of digestion (i.e. chewing). They key here is conscious eating. Taking a deep breath and enjoying your food. When we eat while working, driving, or multi-tasking, these are considered by the body to be “stress” that take away from proper digestion, and can indeed lead to allergies. Nicole explains it further here.
2. Dehydration Causes Fatigue. The problem is that when you don’t drink enough water, your blood becomes thicker, which makes your cardiovascular system work much harder. The result, fatigue. Learn more here, and drink up, people.
3. Magnesium Combats Stress. Some studies show that over half the population is magnesium deficient yet magnesium plays a vital role in combatting stress, which actually depletes our magnesium stores. Our adrenals, which get overworked by stress, need magnesium and so when we are stressed, our adrenals respond by increasing the use of, and need for, magnesium. Without enough magnesium, the nerve cells can become excitable and over-reactive, resulting in even more stress, nervousness and sensitivity. So get yourself some of these foods or a high quality magnesium supplement pronto!
4. Kids Who Use Electronics Before Bed Aren’t Meeting Basic Sleep Requirements. And the same goes for adults! The increasing prevalence of electronics in bedrooms is negatively impacting sleep time, sleep quality and daytime alertness. Using these electronics not only promotes mental activity, but the light emitted from a tablet or smartphone emits sufficient light to miscue the brain and promote wakefulness. This light disrupts our circadian rhythm, tricking our bodies into thinking it’s daytime, when we should be winding down for sleep. As the National Sleep Foundation highlights, adults are subject to these influences but children are particularly susceptible.
We’re feeling more wellness inspired, already! How about you?
