4 January 2021, Cagayan de Oro City – Setting-up a New Year’s resolution has been a tradition in welcoming the new year. These are sets of personal goals to continue the good practices or improve one’s self to be a better version of themselves.

A New Year’s resolution is a positive outlook to start anew from the challenges we faced in 2020. Numerous calamities and disasters hit our country, including the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. So, giving the best foot forward in health and wellness is essential to combat illnesses and diseases, and to be resilient to any form of disaster or emergencies. A healthier you are the best way to jump-start your year!

Here are some healthy new year’s resolutions you can keep in mind:

• Eat more fruits and vegetables. Boost the immune system through eating more fruits and vegetables to guard us against infectious diseases. Also, the vitamins and minerals in fruits and vegetables are essential in regulating bodily processes to keep and maintain our body in good shape. It is recommended to eat at least 400 grams (5 servings) of fruits and vegetables daily. Use the Pinggay Pinoy, a healthy food plate for Filipinos, as a guide in the right proportioning of foods per meal.

• Sit less and be physically active. In the new normal set-up, we tend to sit more because of the online classes and work from home setting. Being physically active does not only improve your health and physique but can also help you cope with stress. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends adults to engage in least 30 minutes of physical activity per day such as walking, dancing, jumping ropes, etc.

• Ditch salty, fatty and sugar-rich foods. Kumainment No. 8: Hinay-hinay sa maaalat, mamantika at matatamis highlighted that consumption of salty, fatty and sugar-rich foods increases the risk of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) like hypertension, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and cancer.

• Quit smoking. It is a smart idea to quit smoking the soonest you can. Smoking is one of the risk factors for NCDs. Aside from putting you at risk to a long list of health problems, it can also lead you to death. Take your chance now to say goodbye to cigarettes.

• Limit alcoholic beverages. Moderate and occasional drinking is fine, however, excessive alcohol consumption has negative health consequences such as liver disease, high blood pressure, depression, anxiety, etc. If you haven’t tried drinking, never take a sip.

• Get more quality sleep. Take a rest from our daily battles. Sleep is essential for overall health. Good sleep reduces stress, improves memory and immunity and rejuvenates your body. National Sleep Foundation recommends 10-13 hours of sleep for preschool children, 9-11 hours for school-age children, 8-10 hours for teens and 7-9 hours for adults. To achieve the recommended hours, have a regular sleeping time and limit screen time before going to bed.

• Grow your own food. One of the positive things this pandemic has brought was bringing back the people to gardening. Home gardening is the best way to secure that you can have healthy food on your plate at all times whatever the circumstances may be. Growing your foods assures that you consume fresh and safe foods. Likewise, you can also save money and it helps you limit your grocery trips.

Most new year’s resolutions are maintained for a short period. But with the right motivation and positive perspective, you can sustain your resolutions whole year round and for the years to come.

Good health contributes to human overall well-being and happiness. A healthy lifestyle makes you more productive, thus, allowing you to prosper, progress and live long. Indeed, health is wealth. May your healthy goals for 2021 be also your lifetime goals.

A healthy and prosperous 2021 from National Nutrition Council X! (NO II Arlie Joy O. Damiles)

References:

National Nutrition Council. 2019. 4^5th Nutrition Month. Kumain nang wasto at maging aktibo… Push natin ‘to! Retrieve from https://www.nnc.gov.ph/downloads/category/139-2019-nutrition-month?download=1767:2019-nutrition-month-talking-points

World Health Organization. 29 April 2020. Doing What Matters in Times of Stress. Retrieved from https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240003927?gclid=Cj0KCQiA3NX_BRDQARIsALA3fIKq-K-HGu4XgpufzllRgFhsbHy_ptVIigCV34FDceaYLBhabB-y8RQaAlDyEALw_wcB

World Health Organization. 1 June 2018. Noncommunicable diseases. Retrieved from https://www.who.int/en/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/noncommunicable-diseases

Shmerling, R. H. (2020, August 28). Sorting out the health effects of alcohol. Harvard Health Blog. Retrieved from https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/sorting-out-the-health-effects-of-alcohol-2018080614427