Are you Using as Much Sunscreen as You Should Every Day?

The most powerful anti-aging device is a simple bottle of sunscreen. The best way to protect the wellness and wellbeing of your skin is by protecting it from sun damage.

 

Sun damage not only threatens your life by making you more susceptible to getting skin cancer, but it also makes your skin look older. And yet, many people still refuse to wear sunscreen when spending time outside in the sunshine.

 

The facts about sunscreen are absolutely indisputable according to researchers and dermatologists: wearing a broad spectrum sunscreen will not only help to protect you from getting skin cancer, it will also slow down the signs of aging. A recent study even goes on to say that wearing a sunscreen all year round can actually slow down the aging process by around 24 percent. If you fancy looking fabulous as all your peers are deteriorating, this could be your secret to success.

 

A recent study showed that around 10 percent of the population do not wear sunscreen ever – under any circumstances at all, which is quite shocking. The same study also found that around 32 percent of the population only wear sunscreen when there is bright sunlight, but the fact is that UV rays can penetrate clouds and you are in almost as much danger on cloudy days in summertime. Around 27 percent of those surveyed admitted that they only wear sunscreen when on holiday or at a specific location such as the beach or pool.

 

Most alarmingly of all, around one percent of the population still go and spend time on tanning beds.

 

Sunscreen information (and misinformation) can be confusing, with regards to SPFs and so on, but all you really need to know is that you need to buy a broad spectrum sunscreen with a high sun protection factor. You must keep reapplying it too, even if the bottle claims that it is waterproof or lasts all day.

Categories: anti aging, broad spectrum, nbsp, percent, skin, Skin Cancer, spectrum sunscreen, spf, sunscreen, wear, wear sunscreen

Workaholic Wellness: How to Take Care of Yourself

When you’re a workaholic, corporate wellness becomes essential. Spending the majority of your time in the office means that your wellbeing often takes a back seat, especially with regards to your weight loss wellness. In fact, researchers at Kansas State University, who looked at workaholics who logged 50-plus office hours a week, found that these individuals skipped meals more often, had worse overall diets and experienced more mood problems than those who worked less. Sometimes cutting back your hours isn’t an option – whether due to the demands of your job or your own workaholic personality – so how do you eat and live healthily while still giving your all to the job you love?

 

1. Keep healthy foods within reach: According to nutritionist Elisa Zied, author of the upcoming book, Younger Next Week, the best snacks to have on your desk should contain a mix of protein plus produce or whole grains. Zied explains, ‘This combination of protein and fibre is filling, helps steady blood sugar and provides many other key nutrients to help your body and brain perform optimally.’ Try some wholegrain crisps with hummus, some fresh fruit and yoghurt or dried fruit mixed with nuts and whole grain cereal.

 

2. Drink plenty of water: If you’re going to be “on it” in the office, you need to drink plenty of H2O. Not only will it keep you hydrated and your brain in good working order, but guzzling down water will force you to get up and go to the loo several times a day, which will save you from sitting down for too long. Pamela Peeke, MD, assistant clinical professor of medicine at the University of Maryland and author of Body for Life for Women, comments, ‘When you’re inactive, your metabolism glacierizes. You cool down, important enzyme systems slow down significantly, and this leaves you with an inability to efficiently process blood glucose and cholesterol. Thus, blood sugar and lipids rise.’ Therefore, you need to find every excuse to stand up and move around.

 

3. Use SPF: The best skincare advice going is that you should wear sun cream every day – regardless of the weather or whether or not you’re going outside. However, failing that (because, let’s be honest, you’re likely to forget to wear sun cream every day) you should make sure your foundation and/or moisturiser contains SPF – that way, you’re always covered, literally!

 

4. Eat off smaller plates: Zied points out, ‘Eating off smaller plates can help you eat less. For one, you can’t put as much food on a smaller plate as you can on a bigger one. Also, you may eat less quickly because you’ll have less food. Think about when your tube of toothpaste or shampoo bottle are near empty, you use less and try to conserve. Using smaller utensils, cups and bowls can also help you naturally eat less, too.’

 

5. Put a nature scene as your desktop background: ‘Research shows that connecting with nature in any way soothes you and brings the stress hormone cortisol down to a more functional level,’ Dr. Peeke notes. ‘There is a deeply spiritual element, which is a humbling moment, when we see the grandeur and majesty of nature and realise the small part we play.’

 

6. Make breakfast – not dinner – your big meal of the day: ‘Having a big breakfast tells your body that you’re not starving after an overnight fast,’ says Zied. ‘And as a bonus, a nutrient-rich breakfast sets you up to be alert, productive and focused, and helps your body and brain perform optimally.’

Categories: Blood Sugar, brain perform, drink plenty, nbsp, perform optimally, smaller plates, spf, Sun Cream, wear sun, Workaholic, zied