Is Wealth Replacing your Health?

What choice would you make? A way that just makes you wealthy or the one where you can balance earning wealth while taking care of your health?

“I aspire to be like you one day,” I told my uncle when I visited him in the Intense Critical Cardiac Care Unit (ICCU). It was really heart wrenching to see a person like him lying helplessly on the hospital bed. Well- known for his iron will and strong determination, he was a man who started from scratch and developed a multi dollar business mansion in a span of three decades. Ask about his age, and he smiles and tells you, “I am 50 years young!”

While coming out from the hospital, I kept wondering where it all went wrong with him. Doctors were monitoring his condition closely as he had suffered a major heart attack. They said he was critical and the heart attack could have been averted if he had taken care of his health.

In today’s turbulent economic conditions, managing a business for an entrepreneur is an arduous task. Engaged in calls and meetings around the clock, sitting for long hours with the laptop, and incessant responsibilities take a toll on health. Usually people who manage their own businesses pay attention to every important task, but their health.

How to stay fit while sitting behind a desk all day?

But the big question is should you go about earning wealth at the cost of losing your health? Think about it from a business perspective – if it’s a gain at the loss of your health. Is it worth it? A wise answer would be an obvious “no.” By not paying enough attention to their health, entrepreneurs can manage to pass through their 20s and 30s with few health problems, but these issues catch up slowly. Whether it is the development of crippling back problems, diabetes, high blood pressure,high cholesterol, or digestive disorders, most of these conditions are very hard to reverse once they are set in.

For entrepreneurs, a sedentary lifestyle, lack of time for exercise, and a constantly stressed out mind, are some major factors which are responsible for the onset of major chronic diseases. To battle against them, one needs to consciously inculcate some small, yet significant changes in their lifestyle. To be hale and hearty make sure that you eat healthy food, take out time for some exercise every day, practice meditation and relaxation techniques to get rid of stress, avoid junk foods, and sleep adequately for about 7-8 hours every day.

Make healthy eating choices to keep productivity levels high

Regardless of your definition of success, make sure that you follow a healthy lifestyle to reap long term heath benefits. Just as your business thrives well when you take care of it, the same way your body and mind will function properly only if you adequately take care of it.

Adopt Walking as Part of Your Healthy Lifestyle

As Ralph Waldo Emerson puts it “The First wealth is health” and in life you should never barter your health with wealth. For all those who manage their businesses, this should serve as the right dose of motivation to take charge and manage their health as well.

Read more:

Snack Smartly: Be Hale and Hearty. 

Stay Fit While You Work.

Walk for Health.

Diabetes Treatments to Avoid

Internet is perhaps the best innovation in decades that has transformed the world forever. The way we research, the way we communicate, and the way we shop has changed. The famous quote by Voltaire, “with great power comes great responsibility,” is very relevant here. Internet has given us great power, but it comes with a huge responsibility as well. With unlimited access through internet, the world is open to us, but it has also made us extremely vulnerable.

Recently, US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a warning to about 15 companies to stop illegal sale of treatments for diabetes. Many of these drugs are labeled as dietary supplements and make a false claim to prevent, cure, or reduce diabetes and associated complications. Some of these companies have been successful in deceiving people looking for natural treatments for diabetes. Always remember, just because something is natural doesn’t mean that it is good and will benefit you.

In this advisory, FDA has cautioned the consumers to not use these or similar products as they may contain harmful ingredients or may be otherwise unsafe. Some of these products also contain active pharmaceutical ingredients and therefore should not be sold as a dietary supplement and over the counter (OTC) products. To read the full advisory notice, please go tohttp://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom/PressAnnouncements/ucm362012.htm.

Therefore, it is important that you do your research and go to trustworthy and credible information sources for advice. At IControlMyHealth, our mission is to provide scientific, comprehensive, unbiased, and up-to-date medical information and treatment options. In collaboration with academic experts, we have developed an objective evaluation criterion for non-conventional approaches. Through this, we educate consumers on the non-conventional products that have evidence of efficacy. For people suffering from type 2 diabetes, following is a list of products that have some evidence of efficacy and may be used after consultation with your doctor:

• Aloe Vera
• Alpha-lipoic acid
• Bitter melon
• Chromium
• Cinnamon
• Fenugreek
• Ginger
• Grape seed extract
• Gymnema sylvestre
• Omega 3 fatty acids
• Polyphenols
• Vitamin –D

Following is a list of products that do not have efficacy data and therefore should not be used:

• Asian Ginseng
• Beta-glucan (soluble fiber)
• Bilberry leaf
• Biotin
• Carnitine (L-Carnitine, Acetyl L-Carnitine)
• Coenzyme Q10
• Evening Primose oil
• Milk Thistle
• Noni fruit

To learn more about the evaluation criteria and details on each of the products listed above, please go to (dietary supplements).

Empowering you with credible health Information

IControlMyHealth Editorial Team

Has Internet Become Your Health Guru?

Internet has become a fundamental part of our lives. It is very common to hear someone say, “I cannot live without Internet” or “Google is my best friend.” From reading daily newspaper to finding recipes and review of new cell phone, people find Internet as a quick and easy source of information. Although not a substitute to visiting a healthcare professional, Internet is becoming the most preferred source of health information for many of us. There are numerous e-sources (websites) that provide information about health and diseases. Most of the websites give this information in very easy to read format, segregated by symptoms, treatments, causes etc.

Some people, especially adolescents, consider Internet as a safe and confidential source of information on health matters. In addition, younger generation easily adapts to new technology (e.g., the Internet). According to a survey conducted in Canada, 67 percent adolescents use Internet to learn about specific medical condition. Studies from US indicate that about 49 percent adolescents use Internet to gather information on sensitive health issues, such as sexually transmitted diseases, birth control, diet, fitness, exercise, and sexual behaviors.

Read More : Health and Lifestyle Informations

Some research also suggests that people suffering from disorder, such as mental illnesses, which has a stigma attached to it, make active use of Internet to educate them. One population survey from UK reported that 18 percent of all Internet users had used the Internet for information related to mental health. Another study from Ireland found that 68 percent of people aged 18 to 24 years, indicated that they would use the Internet for mental health support if they needed.

The statistics above clearly indicates the increased use of Internet as a source of health information for various reasons among people of different age groups. Although some information available on the Internet may be valuable, rapid development of medical information websites raises the issue of its quality.

Therefore, how can you be sure that the information given on a particular website is absolutely authentic and reliable? The US FDA suggests the following checklist to help make sure that the health information you are reading online can be trusted:

Find Out Who Sponsors the Website

Government organizations, universities, medical schools, and not-for-profit groups generally maintain websites that end with .gov, .edu, or .org. These websites are good sources of health information as the content given is evidence-based.There are some for profit websites that may use .org to reflect their educational mission, therefore it is important to review some of the points listed below.

Understand the Purpose of Website

Try to understand whether the purpose of website is it to promote a product? Raise money? Or provide information? A good healthcare website aims to provide information for consumers in simple and non-technical language.

Check If the Website Provides Relevant And Original References

Good websites provide the references such as citations of original articles in medical journals. Also this information is prepared or reviewed by people with medical credentials.

Visit Websites that Provide Latest Information

It is necessary that the health information you read is current and updated. Therefore, check if the most recent update or review date is clearly posted.

Check If Your Privacy is Protected before Signing Up

Before you sign up or participate in any contest, check what kind of information does the web site collect about visitors? Find out if there is an option by which you can directly contact the web site owners with problems, feedback, and questions. For instance, look for “contact us” options.

Click on the following link to read more information provided by the US FDA.

References:

1. Harvey Skinner, PhD, Chair, Sherry Biscope, How Adolescents Use Technology for Health Information: Implications for Health Professionals from Focus Group Studies. J Med Internet Res. 2003; 5(4): e32.

2. Dina L. G. Borzekowski, EdD; Vaughn I. Rickert. Adolescent Cybersurfing for Health Information A New Resource That Crosses Barriers. Arch PediatrAdolesc Med. 2001; 155(7):813-817.

3. Powell J, Clarke A.Internet information-seeking in mental health: population survey. Br J Psychiatry. 2006; 189:273-277.

4. Horgan A, Sweeney J. Young students’ use of the Internet for mental health information and support. J PsychiatrMent Health Nurs. 2010; 17(2):117-123.