Achieving Total Health
Although tea drinking has been associated with health benefits for centuries, only in recent years have its medicinal properties been investigated scientifically. In the past 20 years, thousands of studies have shown green tea’s benefits. Let tea help you achieve a healthier you. Also consider adding exercise to your life. Exercise is needed to keep your body and mind healthy. Great forms of exercise are Tai Chi or Qi Gong. Staying healthy requires a whole body approach. Make a commitment to begin your total health program today.
Did you know:
Green Tea has high concentration of Catechins, antioxidants that fight and may even prevent cell damage.
Green tea is not processed much before it is poured in your cup making it rich in catechins
Green tea has been shown to improve blood flow. A 2013 review of many studies found green tea helped prevent a range of heart-related issues, from high blood pressure to congestive heart failure.
Green tea seems to help keep blood sugar stable in people with diabetes
In one Swiss study, MRIs revealed that people who drank green tea had greater activity in the working-memory area of their brains. Green tea has also been shown to help block the formation of plaques that are linked to Alzheimer’s disease.
Green tea can help increase and even change your metabolism, so you burn more calories from fat. Studies show that green tea can also help you keep weight off once you’ve lost it.
If you swap green tea for sugary drinks. “All things being equal, if you sub 1-2 cups of green tea for one can of soda, over the next year you’d save over 50,000 calories,” That’s more than 15 pounds.
Sipping tea helps you slow down and relaxes you. An amino acid called theanine found in green tea can provide a calming effect. Great news in today’s busy stressful world.
Levels of the healthful compounds in green tea can vary. Good quality whole leaf teas are the best to get your body going. Canned green-tea drinks and blended bag teas generally have very low levels of the desired compounds. Whenever possible buy blends that are unsweetened. There are many green tea blended with berries that are naturally sweet.
Tai Chi and Qi Gong are ancient martial arts forms of exercise that can prevent or ease many ills of aging and could be the perfect activity for the rest of your life. They combine deep, diaphragmatic breathing and flowing, dancelike poses provide a remarkable potent workout for people of all ages.
In various recent studies, tai chi has been found to improve balance, leg strength, cardiovascular endurance, pulse rate, muscular flexibility, immune system response, sleep habits, happiness, sense of self-worth, and ability to concentrate and multitask during cognitive tests.
Tai chi is definitely better than no or other very light activity exercise. Studies suggest that Tai Chi and Qi Gong produces far better outcomes compared to low-impact activities such as stretching.
In one especially impressive study from last year the brains of older people who had been practicing tai chi for several years were compared with the brains of age-matched sedentary adults. The tai chi participants showed greater connectivity and other measures of health in portions of the brain known to be involved in decision-making and attention than the volunteers who had never done tai chi.
Here at Opus Total Health we have a variety of loose leaf organic teas. The most benefit is only gained when we drink the tea, so find a blend that you like and make it your own.
A great organic loose tea shop is now available to you. Located in Connecticut’s historic Stonington Borough at 129 Water Street. If you find yourself in the borough stop at Amapola’s Tea & More Specialty store.
Start drinking loose leaf tea for your enjoyment and your health. Remember that to stay healthy you need a whole body program. There are many things that you can do to help you regain your health stamina. Call us for a complete evaluation of your health problems, we can help you build a plan for a healthy future.
Tia Chi and Qi Gong are centuries-old mind-body exercises, now gaining popularity in the United States, consists of slow-flowing, choreographed meditative movements with poetic names like “wave hands like clouds,” “dragons stirring up the wind,” and “swallow skimming the pond” that evoke the natural world. It also focuses on basic components of overall fitness: muscle strength, flexibility, and balance.
Overall, tai chi “can improve both physical and psychosocial health,” said Dr. Chenchen Wang, the director of the Center for Complementary and Integrative Medicine at Tufts Medical Center in Boston. You may also find tai chi appealing because it’s inexpensive and requires no special equipment. You can do tai chi anywhere, including indoors or outside. And you can do tai chi alone or in a group class. When learned correctly and performed regularly, tai chi can be a positive part of an overall approach to improving your health. The benefits of tai chi may include:
Decreased stress, anxiety and depression
Improved mood
Improved aerobic capacity
Increased energy and stamina
Improved flexibility, balance and agility
Improved muscle strength and definition
The health benefits of tai chi are evident for those who do it. Tai chi also has helped many:
Enhance quality of sleep
Enhance the immune system
Help lower blood pressure
Improve joint pain
Improve symptoms of congestive heart failure
Improve overall well-being
Reduce risk of falls in older adults
You may find it helpful to practice tai chi in the same place and at the same time every day to develop a routine. But if your schedule is erratic, do tai chi whenever you have a few minutes. You can even practice the soothing mind-body concepts of tai chi without performing the actual movements when you are in a stressful situation, such as a traffic jam or at work.
Start improving your health today by drinking tea, making better food choices and incorporate some form of exercise. Call our total health clinic and talk with experts to determine the best approach for you. It is never too late to live a better healthier life.
To Your Health,
Opus Total Health
401-397-6333