What Can You Do To Make Waking Up Easier?

Wakey Wakey, Eggs ‘n’ Bakey!

Back in 1962, Neil Sedaka sang that “Breaking Up is Hard To Do.” But as I’m hitting my snooze alarm for the 20th time and groaning at the thought of getting out from under the covers, I tend to think that he actually meant to saywaking.

How many of us have this problem?

The alarm goes off in the morning, and we proceed to:

• Turn it off, roll over, and go back to sleep.
• Audibly moan out of frustration.
• Hit the snooze alarm countless times.

It’s a tough situation to break free from, but is it possible to make getting out of bed and ready for the day an easier task?

Set Your Alarm Earlier

One trick that might help you wake up in the morning is to set your alarm for an earlier time! That way, when your fingers keep reaching for the snooze, you’ll eventually rise and shine at just the right time instead of oversleeping.

It will feel a bit like that glorious moment when you wake up in the middle of the night only to realize that you still have plenty of time left to sleep. It makes those last hours, or minutes, of sleep feel extra soothing.

It’s particularly nice because you’ll still get the satisfaction of sleeping in without actually doing the sleeping in. Brilliant!

Go To Bed Earlier

I know that this is the last piece of advice you wanted to get, but it’s true! If you go to bed earlier, you will feel more rested when morning arrives and it will be much easier to pry yourself out of your cave.

You don’t have to go to sleep ridiculously early to pull this off, though. Just try heading to bed a half hour to an hour before you normally would, and see how it feels. You’ll probably be so happy with the results that you won’t mind doing it again tomorrow!

Make Turning Off the Alarm More Challenging

If your main problem is the close proximity of the snooze button, make it a little harder to turn off your alarm! Try one of these options:

• Get an alarm that requires you to do a math problem or write a sentence before it stops beeping.
• Put your alarm clock or phone across the room, so you’re forced to get out of bed to turn it off.

Let the Sun Shine In

Don’t cover your windows with so many layers of curtains that the sun can’t possibly get in to disturb you. We’ve already established that you have trouble waking up, so why would you want to make it even easier to sleep in?

Unless you’re living in Alaska and the sun is up 24/7, keep your windows relatively clear. Buy basic blinds or sheer curtains that block out the outside world without creating a black hole in your bedroom. That way, you can get plenty of rest while the sun is down, but then greet the day when the sun fills your room with light

Eat Breakfast

Make it a habit to eat breakfast first thing in the morning! Once you start hopping out of bed at just the right time and heading straight for a healthy breakfast, it’ll become second nature and you won’t have to force it anymore.

On top of helping you wake up, you’ll be starting off with a solid, tasty breakfast that will help keep you awake and energized for the rest of the day. It’s a win-win!

Take An Immediate Shower

Right when your alarm goes off in the morning, jump out of bed and into the shower. Let the water wake you up! Instead of relaxing in bed, you can relax under the warm water instead. It feels great, and you’ll immediately feel more awake!

To make it even more effective, try listening to music in the shower! If you can find a place to hook up a music player that isn’t near any water (so you don’t get electrocuted), you can play some energizing music to help get your day started on the right foot.

Hire An Assistant

Has any effort on your own part failed and left you discouraged about your wake-up routine? Try getting help from a friend or family member! Find someone who will be awake before you need to start your day, and have them call you to wake you up.

Talking to someone is a surefire way to drag you out of your hibernation. After putting in the effort to hold a conversation, crawling out from under the covers will be the next obvious step!

Choose An Alarm That Gets You Going

If you have the possibility of choosing an alarm noise other than the typical ‘beep,’ pick something that will get you out of bed faster!

• Choose a song by an artist with a really shrill, high-pitched voice.
• Use one of your favorite dance tunes, so you can’t resist tapping your toes and singing along.
• Pick something loud and obnoxious that’s impossible to ignore
  
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What Are Frightening Facts About Food Poisoning?

What Are the Symptoms?

Most of us have experienced at least a mild case of food poisoning at some point in our lives. Here are some of the telltale signs that let you know you ate something that was contaminated:

• Abdominal pain
• Fever
• Diarrhea
• Vomiting

Even more severe symptoms can develop depending on what bug you were infected with. Click through to learn more frightening facts about food poisoning.

When to Go to the Doctor

Most of the time, food poisoning will improve on it’s own, but if you have any of these symptoms, you should see a doctor as soon as possible:

• Severe abdominal pain
• No improvement after 2 days
• Fever of 101 or greater in addition to other symptoms
• Diarrhea or vomiting more than 5 times a day

Who is in Danger

You should also see the doctor even if you don’t have accelerated symptoms if you fall into one of the following categories:

• Young children and babies
• Elderly
• HIV Positive or otherwise compromised immune system
• Undergoing cancer treatment
• Pregnant
• Diabetic
• Recently had surgery

Home Treatment

The best thing you can do to treat food poisoning is to stay hydrated. Try to avoid sodas or anything else that contains a lot of sugar because that can only make diarrhea worse. The best thing is plain old water or something likePedialyte. Eat small meals that are low in fat so that you don’t irritate your stomach further. You can take anti-diarrheal medications but beware that they may prolong your illness if you are suffering from salmonella poisoning.

Incubation Period

When you suddenly get food poisoning, it is easy to blame the last thing you ate, but that is rarely the case. Except when the culprit is shellfish or another marine toxin poisoning, which can set in as quickly as 15 minutes after ingesting the tainted food, most cases of food poisoning surprisingly take about 12 to 48 hours and sometimes longer between when you are infected and when you show symptoms. This is why it is often so hard to pinpoint the source of infection in widespread cases.

How Long it Lasts

Most cases of food poisoning will only last about 2 or 3 days, but it really depends on what you were infected with. If you are lucky you could recover in as little as a day, but if you are unlucky and get infected with something like the parasite Giardia, you could be sick for a couple of months!

Food Poisoning is Contagious

You might be surprised to know that many cases of food poisoning are actually contagious, meaning you can infect those around you if you aren’t careful. Often you won’t know exactly what you are infected with, so always behave as if you are contagious. It isn’t airborne, but can be spread by contaminated contact, so be sure to stay home from work or school and wash your hands frequently and clean up after yourself thoroughly if you are vomiting or have diarrhea.

Clean Isn’t Always Clean

Just because a kitchen looks clean doesn’t mean that it is free of the microbes that can cause food poisoning. Your favorite restaurant may look pristine but if they aren’t using proper sanitation methods on their dishes, counter tops, hands and other surfaces, you can still get infected! This goes for your own home as well!

Shelled isn’t Safe

Just because a food comes in a shell or peel doesn’t mean that it is safe from the microbes that cause food poisoning. Eggs are often contaminated with salmonella so be sure you always cook them thoroughly until the yolk is firm and never eat uncooked batter that contains raw eggs, no matter how fun it is! As for bananas and similar fruit, always wash them before peeling so the inside doesn’t become contaminated with anything that could be on the outside.

Smell Isn’t Everything

If you think you have a foolproof system for figuring out what is safe to eat by judging if it smells bad or not, think again. While that may work to weed out the worst offenders, not all contaminated food will necessarily smell bad. Sometimes food can look and smell perfectly okay and still make you sick!

Number of Cases

Food poisoning affects an alarming amount of people each year. Here are the terrifying statistics concerning how many cases of this disease occur just in the US each year:

• 1 in 6 people get food poisoning each year
• About 48 million Americans get sick with food poisoning
• 128,000 people are hospitalized
• 3,000 people die from food poisoning yearly

Not Just Meat

Though they seem to be the most popular offenders, meats aren’t the only foods that can infect you with food poisoning. Many cases of food poisoning come from eggs, fruits, vegetables and even processed foods. Bacteria can be in the fertilizers that are used to grow our fruits or vegetables or they can get contaminated by any workers who handled them before they got to you. So being a vegetarian doesn’t protect you from food poisoning!

Number of Bugs

There are 31 known infectious bugs that cause food poisoning and there are a lot more that are as yet unknown, too! Here are some of the most common culprits that cause food poisoning:

• Norovirus
• Salmonella
• E. Coli
• Campylobacter
• Clostridium
• Cyclospora cayetanensis

Tips to Avoid Food Poisoning

By now you are probably wondering how you can possibly avoid being just another scary food poisoning statistic. Well, here are some tips to minimize your risk:

• Always wash raw fruits and veggies before eating
• Use perishable foods before their expiration dates
• Keep your fridge at 40 or below and your freezer at 0 or below.
• Use separate cutting boards and knives for raw meat and other food like veggies
• Always sanitize surfaces, utensils and hands after handling raw meat
• Use a meat thermometer and cook meat to recommended temperatures
• Don’t leave cooked foods out for more than 2 hours
  
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BANANA -A very interesting FACTS

This is interesting. After reading this, you’ll never look at a banana in the same way again.

Bananas contain three natural sugars – sucrose, fructose and glucose combined with fiber. A banana gives an instant, sustained and substantial boost of energy.

Research has proven that just two bananas provide enough energy for a strenuous 90-minute workout. No wonder the banana is the number one fruit with the world’s leading athletes.

But energy isn’t the only way a banana can help us keep fit. It can also help overcome or prevent a substantial number of illnesses and conditions, making it a must to add to our daily diet.

DEPRESSION:

According to a recent survey undertaken by MIND amongst people suffering from depression, many felt much better after eating a banana. This is because bananas contain tryptophan, a type of protein that the body converts into serotonin, known to make you relax, improve your mood and generally make you feel happier.

PMS:

Forget the pills – eat a banana. The vitamin B6 it contains regulates blood glucose levels, which can affect your mood.

ANEMIA:

High in iron, bananas can stimulate the production of hemoglobin in the blood and so helps in cases of anemia.

BLOOD PRESSURE:

This unique tropical fruit is extremely high in potassium yet low in salt, making it perfect to beat blood pressure So much so, the US Food and Drug Administration has just allowed the banana industry to make official claims for the fruit’s ability to reduce the risk of blood pressure and stroke.

BRAIN POWER:

200 students at a Twickenham (Middlesex) school ( England ) were helped through their exams this year by eating bananas at breakfast, break, and lunch in a bid to boost their brain power. Research has shown that the potassium-packed fruit can assist learning by making pupils more alert.

CONSTIPATION:

High in fiber, including bananas in the diet can help restore normal bowel action, helping to overcome the problem without resorting to laxatives.

HANGOVERS:

One of the quickest ways of curing a hangover is to make a banana milkshake, sweetened with honey. The banana calms the stomach and, with the help of the honey, builds up depleted blood sugar levels, while the milk soothes and re-hydrates your system.

HEARTBURN:

Bananas have a natural antacid effect in the body, so if you suffer from heartburn, try eating a banana for soothing relief.

MORNING SICKNESS:

Snacking on bananas between meals helps to keep blood sugar levels up and avoid morning sickness.

MOSQUITO BITES:

Before reaching for the insect bite cream, try rubbing the affected area with the inside of a banana skin. Many people find it amazingly successful at reducing swelling and irritation.

NERVES:

Bananas are high in B vitamins that help calm the nervous system..

Overweight and at work? Studies at the Institute of Psychology in Austria found pressure at work leads to gorging on comfort food like chocolate and chips. Looking at 5,000 hospital patients, researchers found the most obese were more likely to be in high-pressure jobs. The report concluded that, to avoid panic-induced food cravings, we need to control our blood sugar levels by snacking on high carbohydrate foods every two hours to keep levels steady.

ULCERS:

The banana is used as the dietary food against intestinal disorders because of its soft texture and smoothness. It is the only raw fruit that can be eaten without distress in over-chroniclercases. It also neutralizes over-acidity and reduces irritation by coating the lining of the stomach.

TEMPERATURE CONTROL:

Many other cultures see bananas as a ‘cooling’ fruit that can lower both the physical and emotional temperature of expectant mothers. In Thailand , for example, pregnant women eat bananas to ensure their baby is born with a cool temperature.

So, a banana really is a natural remedy for many ills. When you compare it to an apple, it has FOUR TIMES the protein, TWICE the carbohydrate, THREE TIMES the phosphorus, five times the vitamin A and iron, and twice the other vitamins and minerals.. It is also rich in potassium and is one of the best value foods around So maybe its time to change that well-known phrase so that we say, ‘A BANANA a day keeps the doctor away!’

PS: Bananas must be the reason monkeys are so happy all the time!

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The EASY Way to Great Abs

Don’t Run the Mile Everyday

That’s right, DON’T run the mile everyday. According to Diana Taylor of the University of California-San Francisco Center, “Your body can interpret excessive exercise as stress, causing you to retain fluid and become constipated.” That’s not good! Solution? Try walking or yoga instead.

You can’t get rock hard abs doing Pilates

False. Pilates is an excellent ab workout! It focuses on working out your core. If you do Pilates along with cardio and dieting well, you are bound to get that rock hard six pack!

Do the Bicycle

No, not the dance move. We’re talking about the ab workout. Lie on the floor, hands behind your head. Then lift your body and bring your right elbow to meet your left knee. Alternate, meet the left elbow with your right knee. Do a few reps, feel the burn!

Sit-ups everyday

MYTH: You need to work on your abs everyday to get that rock hard six pack. FACT: Your muscles need to rest and recover after a workout in order to build. Instead of daily, work out your abs 3-4 times a week.

Drink more water!

Here’s a fun fact: drinking more water can help you retain less water because it carries out elements that cause you to bloat like salt, for example. So drink up!

You need a weight machine to get firm.

That is false, you do not need a weight machine to get firm muscles. Those Greek gods seemed pretty firm and they probably didn’t have a Bowflex around. That’s not to say they don’t work, however. Many weight machines are not designed for women and this can lead to injury. Best advice: stick to a yoga mat and the floor for a good ab workout.

Super slow crunches make your stronger

Super slow crunches will not make your stronger or give you a better workout. Sure, steady and controlled crunches will get your abs burning, but if you’re spending a minute per crunch, you’re not getting a better workout than you would with regular crunches and your workout could be less-effective!

Potassium is Your Friend!

Extra salt can cause your belly to do a little bloating. Counteract this bloating with foods high in potassium. Some good ones include bananas, tomatoes, almonds, salmon, and cherries.

The best time to work on abs is at the end of a workout

Physically, it makes no difference when during your workout you work on your abs. The only thing to be aware of is that if you do train your abs at the beginning of a workout, you need to make sure you warm your body up first. You can avoid injury by getting your blood flowing before you work out.

Get 2x the results in half the time!

Only have a limited amount of time to work on your abs a day? Don’t worry, there’s a way to get twice the results from your workout in half the time! The secret? Slow down! When you’re doing crunches, don’t breeze through them. Take 4 counts to sit up. At the peak of your exercise, do 10 small pulses. Then take another 4 counts to sit back down. Feel that burn!

A good ab workout should take 30 min

You do not need to work on your abs a solid 30 minutes to get the best results. You should feel your abs burning long before 30 minutes! If you don’t, you’re doing something wrong. Check your form!

Try the Marine Crunch

Want abs like a Marine? Try this. Lie on your back with your legs straight up so you’re hips create a 90 degree angle and your arms reaching for the ceiling. At the same time, lift your legs and hips off the floor and reach for your toes. Doesn’t that burn?

atch the condiments!

Condiments are high in salt and as we have learned, salt causes puffiness and bloating. The next time you order a sandwich hold the mayo and mustard. Or, on your next sushi date, skip out on the soy sauce. A tablespoon of soy sauce contains nearly half a day’s consumption of sodium!

Keep an eye on those carb-snacks!

Too many carbs can result in bloating. Snacks like bars and candies are high in glycerin or sugar alcohols. Your body struggles to digest these carbs and therefore, you get bloating. Stick to fruits and nuts!

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10 Reasons to Stop Smoking

Smoking is Expensive

The average smoker spends over $2000 a year on their dirty habit. Just think of all the other fun things you could do with that money! For example:

Go on a tropical cruise
Buy a top of the line computer
Go on a wild shopping spree at the mall

Or alternatively, think of all the bills you could pay off if you weren’t spending so much money on cigs.

Smoking Can Cause Impotence

Smokers are much more likely to suffer from erectile dysfunction than non smokers. Enough said?

Smoking Makes You Look Bad

Smoking causes premature wrinkles, not just on your face, but on your whole body. It also causes many of these unattractive symptoms:

Staining of the teeth and other dental diseases
Tooth loss
Premature hair loss

Some of this damage can be reversed by quitting smoking, so the sooner you quit, the better off you’ll be!

Smoking Lowers the Immune System

Smoking cigarettes not only impairs a smoker’s immune system, leaving them more susceptible to diseases such as pneumonia, but also the immune system of those around them. Children, and especially babies, are put at extreme risk

Smoking Affects the Mind

Smokers who keep smoking into middle and old age are much more susceptible to early mental decline, including dementia and Alzheimer’s. These diseases will occur even if it doesn’t run in their families!

Smoking Isn’t Cool Anymore

Let’s face it, most people just don’t like smokers. It’s becoming harder and harder just to find a place outside of your own home where it is acceptable to light up, and when you do, it’s not a popular move. Also, most non-smokers won’t date a smoker.

Secondhand Smoke Kills

When you choose to smoke, you aren’t just hurting yourself, you are hurting those around you. In fact, there is evidence that secondhand smoke may be even more damaging than firsthand smoke! Each year secondhand smoke kills 50,000 people, and that’s just not acceptable.

Smoking Can Cause Infertility

Smoking can cause infertility in both men and women. In men, it can cause their little swimmers to have problems. In women, it can damage their ovaries and make it harder for them to produce healthy eggs. If you do happen to get pregnant, smoking increases chances of miscarriage and ectopic pregnancy.

Quitting Smoking Can Lower Insurance Costs

If you quit smoking, you could lower your health and life insurance payments. Some life insurance companies may even bribe a smoker with lower rates if they promise to quit.

It’s Not Too Late

Many of you may think you have already smoked so long and caused so much damage there is no point in quitting now, but that is not true. As soon as you quit smoking, your body begins to repair itself almost immediately. Some of the first signs will be a recovery of your sense of smell and taste, which should happen in a week or so. In a few weeks, you should even be able to breathe better!

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