The 25 simple health tips to boost your body

If you follow these simple well-being tricks to health-proof your body, you'll soon feel the benefits

Let's be honest, we could all do with looking after ourselves better.

And if you follow these simple well-being tricks to health-proof your body , you'll soon feel the benefits.

Here are 25 instant body boosters from top to toe:

SKIN

Eat a rainbow

The brighter and more varied the colours of fruit and veg – yellows, greens, purples and reds – the more loaded they are with wrinkle-busting antioxidants. A study by the University of St Andrews found women who ate lots of yellow and orange veg had healthier-looking skin and were rated more attractive!

Have sex twice a week

Couples with a healthy sex life (two to three times per week) look up to seven years younger, according to a study by the Royal Edinburgh Hospital – possibly because sex reduces stress and leads to a better night’s sleep.

Learn to sleep on your back

According to the American Academy of Dermatology, sleeping on your side or front with your face pressed into the pillow leads to sleep lines – wrinkles that become etched into the surface of the skin. To reduce wrinkle formation, they advise sleeping face up, on your back.

EYES

Wear shades – even in winter

“The greater your lifetime’s exposure to the sun’s UV rays, the higher your risk of irreversible damage to the retina, which can cause eye problems as you age, including cataracts and age-related macular degeneration (AMD),” warns Professor Dan Reinstein, a specialist ophthalmic surgeon.

“So be sure to wear your sunglasses whenever you spend time outside, even in the winter months or when it’s cloudy as there is still UV present.”

Do a daily eye workout

The following simple technique can exercise your eye muscles and help reduce tension headaches and eye strain caused by staring at a screen all day.

Imagine a giant figure of eight in front of you about 10 feet away. Now turn the eight on its side and trace the shape of the figure with your eyes, slowly. Do it one way for a few minutes, then go the other way.

TEETH

Sip green tea

“Research has found that drinking green tea daily may help fight plaque bacteria, helping keep your teeth and gums healthy,” says Dr Uchenna Okoye, celebrity dentist at London Smiling.

Floss every other day

If you find it hard to floss daily, you’ll be pleased to hear it’s not the end of the world.

“Flossing every other day is enough,” says Dr Okoye. “The key is to get into the habit of doing it regularly so you disrupt the bugs from getting settled in.”

This will reduce your risk of gum disease – and it’s not just your teeth that’ll thank you. In the last 10 years, studies have linked poor gums to an increased risk of other health problems, including heart disease, diabetes and cancers.

NOSE

Forget decongestants

Try this DIY remedy to relieve sinus pressure and a blocked nose.

Alternate pushing your tongue against the roof of your mouth, then pressing between your eyebrows with one finger. According to Professor Lisa DeStefano, this causes the vomer bone, which runs through the nasal passages to the mouth, to rock back and forth, loosening congestion. After just 20 seconds, you should start to feel your sinuses clearing.

FEET

Try ball therapy

“Rolling your foot across the top of a tennis ball can be almost as good as a foot massage when it comes to boosting blood circulation and relieving tight or painful muscles in your feet,” says sports therapist Chris Hirons. “For a more intense stretch, you can use a golf ball and do the exercise standing up rather than seated,” he continues. “Repeated daily, this can help relieve plantar fascia a very common but extremely painful inflammatory condition that affects the sole of the foot.”

EARS

Go on a ‘noise diet’

Wear and tear as we age causes damage to the nerves that send sound messages from the inner ear to the brain, causing hearing loss. However, learning to turn the volume of your life down can help reduce the rate of damage. Limit headphone use to an hour a day and choose noise-cancelling or large muff-style headphones, which are safer than ear buds as they drown out outside noise so you can have the volume lower. You should also turn your TV and radio down one notch (you soon get used to the lower setting) and use earplugs at music gigs.

BRAIN

Get fishy

Research has found that a weekly supper of oily fish, such as salmon or mackerel, which is rich in omega 3 fats, can slow down the brain shrinkage that’s responsible for mental decline as we age by up to a third.

Keep your friends close

Developing good quality friendships is one of the key secrets to living to 100, according to a recent Australian study of centenarians. Scientists believe this is because friends provide emotional support, helping people deal with stress and boosting the body’s production of feel-good chemicals dopamine and oxytocin, which in turn has been found to promote brain growth and combat ageing.

Try TWO apples a day…

Apples, in particular drinking their juice, could help keep your brain young, according to a recent study in the Journal Of Alzheimer’s Disease. Researchers found that just two glasses a day reduced the formation of the sticky plaques found in the brains of dementia patients

Puzzle it out.

Experts claim that puzzles such as sudoku and crosswords can help keep your brain nimble. And according to Dr Gary Small, author of The Longevity Bible, one daily brain-teaser can restore a more youthful memory in just three months.

HEART

Head to bed an hour earlier

A recent study by Harvard Business School found that for people who normally slept for seven hours or less a night, going to bed just one hour earlier led to a significant drop in blood pressure, lowering their risk of heart attacks and strokes.

Say ‘I do’

Married men are three times less likely to die from heart disease than men who have never tied the knot, while marriage appears to halve the risk of cardiac death among women, according to a 2009 study.

SEX ORGANS

Slash stress

“Stress can have a huge impact on a woman’s monthly cycles and lower her fertility,” says consultant gynaecologist Michael Dooley. “And it can also slow male sperm production and lower libido.” To counter this effect, Dooley recommends spending 10 minutes a day doing something that helps you relax, be it listening to music, reading or watching your favourite TV show.

Milk

Just one serving of full-fat milk a day can reduce a woman’s risk of infertility by more than a quarter, according to a study by Harvard University. It’s thought the fat in dairy products helps improve ovarian function. Easy ways to hit your daily quota include having milk on morning cereal and eating a pot of yoghurt or a small piece of cheese.

Get your apron on!

Women who do the housework, gardening or take other moderate forms of exercise are three times more likely to conceive through IVF than those who spend most of the day sitting down, according to new research by the University of North Carolina. The scientists behind the study say this is because exercise prevents the body from producing too much insulin, which is thought to be harmful to the development of healthy eggs.

LEGS

Better your balancing act

“To keep your limbs flexible and strong, try balancing on each foot for as long as possible every morning,” suggests sports therapist Chris Hirons. “This simple move will help to strengthen your leg muscles and improve their ability to sense movement, boosting your stability and reducing your 
risk of falls as you get older.”

KNEES

Eat away joint inflammation

According to alternative health guru, Deepak Chopra, inflammation plays a major role in the joint cartilage deterioration that causes arthritis. “So it makes sense to eat a diet rich in anti-inflammatory nutrients,” he says. Foods rich in inflammation-fighting free radicals include green tea, berries, fatty fish, extra-virgin olive oil, red grapes and apples, garlic, onions, orange or yellow fruits and vegetables and the spices turmeric and ginger.

BELLY

Savvy fat swap

Instead of drinking whole milk, switch to the 1% variety. If you currently consume just one 8oz glass of whole milk a day, over the course of a full year drinking 1%, you will lose an impressive 5lb!

Move to the music

A Canadian study found that women who listened to music while they exercised lost far more weight than women who didn’t. Add musical motivation to your work-out by creating a playlist of your favourite high-energy songs to put on your iPod or MP3 player. And whether you’re visiting the gym, or just off for a walk, you can crank up the volume (but not too loud!) and help shift that fat.

Pick potassium-packed foods

According to US gastroenterologist Dr Patricia Raymond, this mineral helps to regulate the fluid balance in your body and works to keep uncomfortable bloating at bay. Foods with high potassium levels include bananas, cantaloupe, mangoes, spinach, tomatoes, nuts, and asparagus. They also contain an amino acid called asparagine that acts as a diuretic to flush any excess liquid out of your system.

Relax off those pounds

Researchers at Harvard University in the US have found that relaxation techniques, such as yoga or meditation, might not burn as many calories as running or hitting the gym, but can help battle the bulge by lowering your body’s levels of cortisol – the stress hormone that makes you overeat.

Source: Mirror.co.uk