Hasn’t the weather been great for a summer break and we are so fortunate to be able to move around New Zealand freely. I hope that those of you who took a break had a relaxing time. Now, for most of us, it is back to work and back into a routine again.

Breaks in routine often don’t tie in well with healthy eating, but it’s the time of year for a fresh start and to decide where you want to go with your health in 2021.

This year, I really want to focus on the health aspects of maintaining a healthy body composition and in forming a healthy lifestyle. This is also associated with good brain health. Nowadays, it seems that most adults know of someone with dementia, or cognitive decline and we very much hope that we will not end up in the same position.

Dr Ruth Peters, a senior research scientist at Neuroscience Research Australia, has spent years exploring the causes of cognitive decline. The Centre has looked at modifiable lifestyle factors for dementia and cognitive decline and found these examples below raise your risk:

Smoking, drinking alcohol to excess, high blood pressure, obesity, diabetes, being physically inactive and social isolation in later life. Again, these are deemed modifiable, meaning that you have the opportunity to make changes.

Most of the above issues cause inflammation in the body and inflammation can lead on to, amongst other things, heart disease and cancers. Diabetes causes a huge load of inflammation in the body which is why diabetics are at much higher risk of heart disease. Elevated glucose levels have become way too common and again, this is generally able to be modified through a change in lifestyle and nutrition.

I know, it’s all too easy to have fun, drink too much, pack on a few kilos and say ‘what the hell’, but if you are putting yourself on the path to health issues, isn’t it about time you stopped and thought carefully about what you want from life. Being fit and healthy means you have choices, once your health is compromised, so are your options in life.

Alcohol has become a big issue in the Western world. It is relatively cheap, very accessible and mostly, socially acceptable. But, it was never meant to be part of your daily diet. Having a drink or two every evening is not only a great way to pack on the kilos, it also messes with hormone levels, can be inflammatory and also lead to broken sleep and other issues.

This was an interesting article in the Herald recently, explaining what happens when you drink alcohol. From first sip to hangover - the science of intoxication.

While we are on the topic of maintaining a healthy body composition I am going to show you what fat on a body looks like, shown by MRI.

In the first image, the woman on the left is 113.6 kilos and the woman on the right is 54.5 kilos. The white areas are fat. We all need some fat, but excess fat causes issues.

You can see how the internal (visceral) fat pushes the organs out of place and takes up a lot of space in the abdominal area. Excess fat also forces the hips, legs, knees and ankles into different alignment.

The second scan shows again just how much fat has built up in the abdominal area. Visceral fat makes inflammatory chemicals and this is a risk factor for diabetes, heart disease, cancers, etc. Inflammation is a cause of many health issues.

Patrick's review

Patrick completed the 6 week challenge (well in 7 weeks as he was sick one week) and in that time he lost 8.5 kilos. He really took on board the advice and recommendations I made and got right into the swing of things. That 8.5 kilos of fat was all he needed to lose so now he is feeling amazing and all set for 2021.

"Lynda has been fantastic to deal with. She provided me with the road map that I need to achieve excellent results in a short period. I feel the best I have felt in years, with tons of energy and a new sized body. I would highly recommend Lynda if you are frustrated with your weight and need an effective, easy, weight loss solution."

Time for a fresh start?

January is the perfect time to put some healthy habits in place. The days are long, giving you more daylight hours to fit in some exercise and the warm weather makes it easy to focus on eating lighter foods. BBQ’s, salads, etc are so appealing right now.

The beginning of a year is always a good time to reassess what you want from life. If good health and looking after your brain are important to you, think about the modifiable factors I mentioned earlier in this newsletter. To a large extent, your health is in your hands.

I’m looking forward to catching up with you again and as always, never feel bad if your halo has slipped and things haven’t gone the way you would have liked over 2020, let’s move forward and get going again.

Contact me now for an appointment.