Category: RESET TO HEALTH

Kiwi Fruit

The humble Kiwi is no ordinary fruit! Did you know that eating the Kiwi fruit an hour before bed may help you sleep better.

Great To Help You Sleep Better And A Powerhouse Of Antioxidants

Studies are proving that the humble Kiwi is no ordinary fruit! Did you know that eating the Kiwi fruit an hour before bed may help you sleep better. Add to this the nutritional composition, this fruit is a must have addition to your routine diet.

Several Studies indicate that people who consumed kiwifruit before bed each night got an extra hour of sleep. The researchers hypothesized that Kiwifruit might be an effective sleep aid due to the antioxidants and Serotonin that the fruit contains.

Serotonin deficiency has long been associated with depression and mood disorders. It is also key to good sleep. Serotonin in the body contributes to several aspects of sleep, including helping to initiate sleep onset and to maintain sleep during the night. Serotonin appears to interact with Melatonin, another hormone essential to sleep, in helping to regulate the body’s 24-hour circadian cycle as well as other physiologic functions.

These study results are promising for those with sleep disorders, and are especially significant given that the long-term health ramifications of sleep disorders like insomnia.

Studies dating back to a few years ago associate sleep disorders with increased mortality, suggesting that an optimal amount of sleep to get per night is seven hours.

Kiwi also has many other useful and interesting aspects

Loaded With Vitamins and Minerals

Kiwi fruit is loaded with vitamins and minerals such as Vitamins A, B6, B12, E, and potassium, calcium, iron and magnesium.

If you thought that lemons and oranges were the highest sources of Vitamin C, then think again! According to the nutritional break-up of kiwi fruit, per 100 grams contain 154 percentage of Vitamin C, which is almost twice that of lemons and oranges.

Great Source of Dietary Fiber

The Kiwi is loaded with dietary fiber, which helps in the prevention of numerous diseases. According to researchers, high fiber foods keep one full for longer and control metabolic markers like blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar. It also facilities weight loss and is often recommended to diabetics.

Other foods that can help us sleep better

While Kiwi is thought to be among the best, it isn’t the only identified sleep-boosting food out there. Foods rich in calcium help to boost Melatonin levels. So you might look towards dairy, soy, nuts, seeds, and whole grains – which are all strong sources of calcium. Dark leafy greens, bananas, nuts, seeds, citrus, tomatoes, and whole grains are rich in Magnesium and potassium, which is said to help promote relaxation and circulation.

The definitive research finding is yet to be out on the mechanism by which Kiwi promotes sleep. Having said that, the possibility that natural foods like Kiwi can be used as a low-cost, non-pharmacologic, natural aid for sleep is an exciting one, and worth further investigation. Give a shot at Kiwi if you have trouble falling asleep. Not just is it great to help with your Zzzz, it is also great for it’s many nutritional benefits

The Corona Virus Outbreak – Strategies For Effective Remote Work

As the corona virus story unfolds around the world, we’ve put together some effectiveness tips to help people and organizations adopt effective remote work strategies

Effective Remote Work What Strategies Can We Adopt

As the corona virus story unfolds around the world, we’ve put together some effectiveness tips to help people and organizations adopt effective remote work strategies.

Remote working, or the practice of working for an extended period outside the formal office, is growing steadily in popularity, enabled by a whole host of digital tools of virtually every description. From Web conferencing and e-mail to mobile collaboration applications and virtual event platforms.

I’m sure each of us hopes that Corona Virus won’t become a major health event in their part of the world, but as we see the epidemic unfolding, the reality points the other way.

THREE STRATEGIES FOR REMOTE WORK

The following are three strategies that support remote work and help make your efforts in this direction more fruiful. We look at covering both the technology and the human factors in this post:

Strategy 1: Create a safe and effective base for remote digital access. First and foremost, this means providing secure access to IT resources within the business as well as to the internet itself. This is typically done through an internet provider and virtual private network. You need to asses every part of the connected tech stack, from internet access itself to providing secure means to reach and interact with corporate networks, communication channels, applications being used and the data.

Internet access. Be prepared to invest in mobile hot spots and associated data plans, for the colleagues who do not have optimal internet access. Don’t assume that your staff always have adequate online access at home or elsewhere. While many will, some won’t have reliable or fast enough service or only a mobile device.

Ensure that you have a clearly articulated remote work policy along with a plan, communications program, budget, training, and support for ensuring sufficient internet access wherever the worker will be working remotely.

Allow for adequate slack in your production targets since it may be difficult to know at first the bandwidth that workers will need to be optimally productive. Your line of work may involve needing a lot of data going back and forth regularly. How fast it goes will determine remote work productivity.

Remote work devices. There are two major forks in the road when it comes to devices. Either a) workers can use their own, which is a bigger security risk, but quite a bit cheaper and faster to deploy if their devices are up to the task, or b) a company can provide the devices that are needed. Given that the prevalence of Shadow IT (workers using unsanctioned, unofficial apps to get their work done) is generally higher than most enterprise IT departments are willing to admit – meaning that company data is already on many personal devices anyway – it is advisable to seriously consider assessing workers’ existing computing hardware to see if they are capable, as they are least expensive and quickest option to enable for a crash remote work program.

Your specific type of business requirements would dictate the kind of devices that are needed. Ideally your colleagues are likely to need at least one smartphone and one computer or tablet, plus any internet access hardware. Assess, use your judgement and be objective.

Secure remote access to business assets and online services. Typically this is provided by a virtual private network (VPN) solution, which sits on the PC, laptop, or mobile device and creates an encrypted network connection that makes it safe for the worker to access IT resources within the organization and elsewhere on the Internet or other networks.

In general, the worker should never do any work for the organization without the VPN on their device(s) being turned on. This includes online services on the internet. This is because the VPN ensures a higher level of security and safety between the remote worker and the service.

It’s important to note that the VPN will be the single most important link in your remote work chain, so ensure your solution works on most target devices, works reliably (there is a surprisingly wide gamut of effectiveness, depending on where workers are actually located, which can get complex with global organizations using local internet services, with many IP addresses blocked for a variety of reasons). In addition, strongly consider two-factor authentication (2FA), instead of just user IDs and passwords, to significantly boost security.

If VPN is not your choice of solutions, you don’t need to despair. There are several alternatives, but secure remote desktops can often do the job if you don’t have the IT resources, skills, or budget to operate a VPN everywhere it needs to function.

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Simple Precautions That Will Help You Avoid the Coronavirus at your Workplace

Let’s look at some of the Do’s to avoid the risk of Corona virus at your workplace

  1. Don’t go to work if you feel sick, and don’t let your employees come in either: Given concerns about the new illness and the fact that it’s flu season as well, you should make certain that your employees don’t come to work sick either. You might also review your paid time off or sick day policy to make sure employees never feel compelled to come in if they don’t feel well. They won’t be doing you any favors if they do.
  2. Wash your hands. A lot: People worry about catching viruses when other people cough or sneeze in their vicinity, and of course that is one way of contracting the flu and most likely the coronavirus as well. But it’s also alarmingly easy to catch the flu or another virus if you touch an object or surface that was touched by someone who was contagious any time over the previous 48 hours, especially if you then touch your nose or mouth. This is where frequent hand-washing comes in. The more often you wash your hands, the less likely you are to infect yourself if you’ve touched something that had virus on it, and to give any virus you may have to someone else. This is where frequent hand-washing comes in. The more often you wash your hands, the less likely you are to infect yourself if you’ve touched something that had virus on it, and to give any virus you may have to someone else.
  3. Unless you’re a health care worker or you have flu symptoms, don’t wear a mask: If you’re healthy, wearing a mask is unlikely to help you in most situations, especially if you don’t wear a new one each time you go out. On the other hand, masks have been shown to protect health care workers who may be exposed to the coronavirus and other illnesses in the course of their work. Because of panic over the new virus, some health officials are concerned about a shortage of masks for those health care workers who need them most — and if they get infected, the disease is likelier to spread. In other words, though it’s counterintuitive, wearing a mask when you don’t need one could actually increase your chances of getting the coronavirus, or another virus. If you’re coughing or sneezing, though, wearing a mask may prevent you from sharing your cold or flu with anyone else. In Asia, many people wear masks because it’s considered polite to do so if you have cold or flu symptoms.
  4. Give careful thought to your supply chain: Even if no one in your office gets sick, the coronavirus could be a headache for your business because dealing with the outbreak may interfere with China’s ability to be the manufacturing juggernaut we’ve all come to depend on for just about everything. If your company is dependent on products or product components made in China, it might be smart to stockpile a little more than you normally would in case there’s more widespread disruption to manufacturing if the disease continues to spread. If the virus is contained right away, you may wind up with some extra supplies. If it isn’t, you may be glad you have them on hand.
  5. Remote Work a growing reality: With the growing threat of coronavirus hitting on a wide scale, don’t ignore the prospect of ‘remote work’ or (having to work for prolonged periods outside the formal office). You can find some strategies and recommendations to help adopt effective remote work strategies in this post

The increasing uncertainty and anxiety about the personal dangers from the Corona Virus outbreak is a fact that we cannot hide from. The present times calls for consciously adopting safe practices and a common sense approach to your daily lives.

Routinize Your Fitness

Maintaining a daily schedule can help you stay committed to your Fitness Regime. See why this works better and how you could identify your personal zone.

Visiting the gym whenever you have the free time or sticking to the same time everyday – what’s the better option?

Studies indicate that it is better to be consistent and stick to a daily same-time regime. Here are a few of the reasons why this works out better.

The Habit Factor

One of the main reasons why you should consider being consistent in your daily fitness schedule is simply because it requires a lot less motivation. Humans are creatures of habit and when you stick to a regular exercise routine, over a period of time, you turn it to a habit. If you go to the gym whenever ‘time permits’, you are more likely to skip a few sessions – you tend to juggle with ‘other’ commitments for the free time slot everyday. Compare this with having a set daily time for exercise – you then drive yourself towards something that you do automatically.

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Milk Kefir

Milk Kefir is considered a wonder-drink. Let’s see why this beverage is making waves in the healthy living community

Milk Kefir is a cultured, fermented dairy beverage that tastes very similar to a yogurt drink. It’s made using a starter of “Kefir Grains”, which is a combination of lactic acid bacteria and yeasts in a matrix of proteins, lipids, and sugars.

Kefir and Yogurt have a lot in common but also have many differences. They differ in consistency, nutrient content, and how they’re made. Since Kefir is fermented, most lactose intolerant people can tolerate Kefir.

Some sites recommend that you buy Kefir from the stores. There are many sources that recommend that you prepare Kefir by yourself. My own experience was that I liked the taste of my home grown batch of Kefir much better than the ones that I bought from the store.

Here’s how Kefir is prepared at home.

The main ingredients are Kefir starter grains and Milk (preferably full-fat milk, and not the UHT varieties)

The process is very simple – add a teaspoon of kefir grains to table spoon of full fat milk and mix well. Add this to a cup of milk  and let it sit out at room temperature in a cool dark place for about 24 hours. After the 24 hour period, strain the Kefir grains using a plastic strainer. Your Kefir drink is now ready for consumption.

Here’s what you also need to know :

  • The ‘Kefir Grains’ are living cultures and can be re-used as the starter for subsequent batches. After preparing your batch of Kefir, strain the Kefir Grains. You could store the grains by placing them in a cup of milk and keep in the refrigerator. Stored this way Kefir grains can remain viable for multiple uses.
  • The grains enlarge in the process of Kefir production, even reaching a walnut size, and eventually they split.
  • As the grains grow, you will also notice that your Kefir Milk ferments faster and becomes sourer. If you would like your drink to be less sourer, reduce the quantity of Kefir grains.
  • Make sure that the Kefir grains do not come in contact with metal utensils (spoons, strainers, bowls etc.). Proponents say that contact with metals can spoil the Kefir grains. They recommend that you could use glass bottles, wood or plastic spoons and plastic strainers for producing Kefir.
  • While washing the grains, use filtered or distilled water. Make sure that you maintain a high level of hygiene while producing your batches.
  • When you start on a new starter batch of Kefir Grains, your first batch of production may have an odor. If you are sensitive to the smell, then you could discard the first two batches.

Organic On A Budget

Organic food is often more expensive than conventionally grown food. With organic products being a lifestyle choice and with prices frequently being on the higher side, our organic choices can have an impact on our budget. However if you know your priorities and set spend boundaries, it may be possible to purchase organic food and stay within your food budget.

Here are 7 ways to help you budget your organic purchases.

1. Track Current Spending

It’s helpful to figure out what you are spending on food. Keep your organic purchase receipts for 2 months, to get a realistic picture of your current spending preferences. If you feel inclined, create a spreadsheet to break down your spending by category, including beverages, produce, etc. Once you’ve done this, you can get an idea of where to trim down spending. Tie this in with the monthly food budget (if you haven’t yet made a food budget, then it is a good time to begin).

2. Plan Your Meals

It’s much easier to stick to a budget when you have a plan. Plus, having a purpose for each food item you buy will ensure nothing goes to waste or just sits in your pantry unused. While planning, it’s tempting to opt for every meal being a grandiose experience. Big mistake. These make it difficult to be consistent in following. Start simple with easy salads and simple dishes. Give yourself a two month trial period before moving to more complex plans.

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