It’s a cold hard medical fact that 8 of every 10 people who undergo heavy stress come down with some kind of debilitating illness, disease or health problem within one year after the onset of the stress.
The death of a loved one, changing jobs, moving, problems at work, problems at home, financial problems… according to the study, prolonged high stress in any area results in stress-induced health problems in eight of every ten people ever tested.
In one of the most fascinating medical studies ever conducted researchers looked for common characteristics, not of the 80% who succumb to stress, but of the 20% who experience the exact same stress, but manage to stay healthy and never miss a beat.
Imagine. A study focused on figuring out specific reasons why extremely healthy people are extremely healthy… now that’s valuable!
The study revealed that the extremely healthy group, ones that walk through the fires of stress related hell barefooted and come through just fine, have several things in common.
Common Characteristics Of Extremely Healthy People
- First they eat breakfast everyday, follow their own personalized version of a healthy diet and take a multiple vitamin or other nutritional supplement daily.
- Second, to a person they claimed to avoid sugar, candy, sweets, soft drinks, and junk food.
- Third, there was not a smoker among them, not a single one.
- Fourth, every person in the extremely healthy group reports getting some form of regular exercise or outdoor activity on a daily basis.
- Finally, every one of these super healthy people has a dream they pursue, something important to them, something they enjoy doing and do practically every day.
Your dream can be as simple as tending to a rose garden, playing a musical instrument, participating in a charity or club, painting, or writing, or as complex as finding a cure for cancer.
The size of your dream is not important, it doesn’t matter at all if you earn money doing it and it doesn’t matter what other people think about you doing it.
What’s important is that your dream is your dream, something YOU want to do, something YOU take pride in, something YOU enjoy doing and you make time to do everyday.
And the magic number is…
Fifteen! As long as they spent at least 15 minutes a day doing what they love… doing the activity somehow helped them stay healthy while others with the same kinds of stress dropped like flies.
So how do you spend your 15 minutes? What’s your dream? What lights you up? What turns you on?
What activity, pastime or pursuit captures your imagination, fires your passion and makes you smile?
Whatever your answer, some of the brightest doctors in the world studying this topic conclude that spending a little time everyday doing the thing you love and experiencing the satisfaction of doing it better and better over time can make a big difference in your health.
I’m pictured holding a guitar because I love playing classical guitar and take great pleasure in practicing and getting better and better.
You don’t need a doctor’s prescription to spend time everyday doing something you love, but if you ever need a little justification, (for yourself or anyone else), these studies prove beyond all doubt that people following their dream, even for just 15 minutes a day, are healthier and more resistant to the negative effects of stress.
Now… go do something you really enjoy!
FYI – I play classical guitar, take lessons from a world-class concert guitarist and built the guitar in the picture myself at a guitar building class in Felton California several years ago. It’s a replica of a guitar built by legendary luthier Herman Houser and played for years by Andre Segovia. The original guitar and plans used to build it are on display in the Smithsonian. The plans I used were made from digital photos of the originals.
A Final Thought About Your Health
Great health is a choice you can make. My mission is to give you information and insight you can use to make the healthiest diet, nutrition and lifestyle choices possible.
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Written by Dr. Russell J. Martino, Ph.DThe Voice Of Health
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