I am not one to follow mass media or get on a fad, but when I heard Dr. Oz interviewed on the Today Show about what he discovered surveying the “healthier” people in America, I wasn’t surprised. I wanted to share with you my take on the 5 healthiest habits per Dr. Oz.

Habits of the Healthiest:

These are the habits that came up as the top 5 habits of people who are the healthiest per Dr. Oz. I’m addressing each of these below with why I personally think this is the case. Let us know in the comments what you think.

1. Breakfast. This is the most important meal of the day.  When we sleep, our body goes through a process to reset our system, increasing the automatic mechanisms through the night so that we can be ready in the morning for the coming days work.  Fueling in the morning continues this automatic system of energy in and energy out.  Our metabolism is primed for what is to come.

2. Exercise. As an industrialized community, being sedentary is easy.  We no longer need to hunt and gather our food or travel great distances of our own accord to get to our destination.  Our bodies have developed over many centuries to move.  The inner workings of our heart, blood vessels, muscles, and lymphatic system love movement.  Our cells crave activity so that flow can happen; it is the difference between a clear running creek vs. a stagnant swamp.  If we move, we are rejuvenated and feel fresh (physically and mentally), if we stagnate, we start a build-up of unwanted debris.

3. Sex (healthy relationships.)
Dr. Oz keeps it strictly to sex but I think that this falls under a greater category of “healthy relationships.”  We are social beings.  It is important to our overall feeling of well being and motivation to be connected.  Building a satisfying relationship, whether it is with a physical partner or with other individuals that share interests and we work and play well with helps our overall sense of well being.

4. Me Time.
In our fast paced society, it seems we are running around from one activity to another for someone else.  We sometimes feel guilty for slowing down and doing things that we alone enjoy.  It is important for our mental health to find activities that as individuals we enjoy doing without the pressure of others taking or wanting our time.  We can only care for others if we ourselves are cared for.

5. Stress Management.
What is this?  Some stress is important, but too much is detrimental to our physical system.  We can run ourselves ragged if we don’t give time to reboot, or if we ignore symptoms of too much stress.  Ailments like high blood pressure, headaches, migraines, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, multiple sclerosis, autoimmune disorders, etc., and many more, are all linked to excessive stress. The habits mentioned above actually will help with decreasing and alleviating stress.  There are many ways we can reorganize our daily life to “fit” everything that is really important to us in, without the negative consequences.

Be Healthy.

-Dr Butler