The Top 5 New Year Resolutions from a Natural Health Viewpoint

If you haven't set your goals for the New Year, now is the time. Yes, it's once again that time of year to make the resolutions for the New Year that could change your life. Don't just think them up. Write them down. Writing them down makes it real. Put a lot of thought into them. It's true that the resolutions you make now

will change your life IF you stick to them.

Here are the top 5 resolutions from a Natural Health viewpoint:

1. Eat Healthier.

Eating healthier can do a number of things for you holistically. It can change your weight, your health, your general activity level, and give you a more positive mindset. Eating healthier means: eating at scheduled meal times, relaxing while eating, chewing your foods well and choosing the right foods to eat. A healthy diet should consist of the correct balance of protein, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals and water.

Water is an extremely important part of our diet. The human body is made up of over 2/3 water. It's important to replenish your body daily with fresh water to be healthy. If you are feeling particularly tired lately why not try to drink at least 8 glasses of water daily and see what a difference it can make. Mild dehydration is one of the main causes of daytime fatigue.

2. Detoxify your body.

Toxins have built up in your body over time due to environmental pollutants, food additives, medicines, etc. which can lead to chronic and acute illnesses. Do you experience frequent headaches, arthritis, fatigue, unexplained weight gain, brittle hair or nails or bad breath? These are only a small portion of the symptoms that can be experienced from having a buildup of toxins. Fortunately, we can detoxify ourselves and eliminate these many of the problems.

There are many herbs available for use in detoxification such as cascara sagrada, psyllium seeds, milk thistle, burdock roots, nettles and dandelion roots to name a few. There are quality preparations available to purchase in your local health food store and online such as DrNatura.com and Dr. Linda Page.com.

3. Exercise

Did you know that exercising has anti-aging effects? It also is a natural antidepressant, burns calories, builds muscle, increases metabolism, delays the onset of some diseases along with many other effects. Choose an exercise that is fun. If it's fun you are more likely to be motivated to stick with it. Do some sort of physical exercise for 30 minutes each day.

4. Quit smoking (if you smoke)

The minute you quit smoking you decrease your risk of one of the many tobacco related illnesses such as cancer or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

Need more reasons to quit? The carbon monoxide level in your blood drops to normal range within the first 12 hours of quitting. Two to three months after quitting your lung function and circulation improves. The average smoker who smokes 1 pack per day will spend an estimated $1186.25 per year. The benefits are numerous.

5. Learn to manage stress

Stress is a killer. It delivers chronic and acute diseases such as hypertension, weight gain or loss, migraines, allergies, cancer, depression, shortened life span etc. Learn to eliminate stress with meditation, yoga, biofeedback etc. Accept the things you cannot change, say no if you need to, take time to enjoy life and make efforts to look for the positive in all situations. If you look hard enough you'll find that gold lining in every situation. Our perception sometimes is not a true one at all. Step back and reevaluate. Work on how you interpret situations.

The list can go on and on but this is a good place to get started. The above 5 goals are a great start for the New Year. They can make a dramatic difference in your life.