Habits that minimize illness

From taking cold showers to eating eggs, discover healthy habits that can help you get sick less and live a healthier life.

Cold shower

Taking a cold shower has a stimulating effect on the body similar to exercise. Research from the Garvan Institute of Medical Research in Sydney, Australia, published in the journal Cell Metabolism in 2014, supports this claim. Scientists found that shivering stimulates the conversion of energy-storing "white fat" into energy-burning "cooked fat."

Avoid sleep deprivation.

According to scientists at Weill Cornell Medical College in Doha, Qatar, just 30 minutes of sleep deprivation each weekday can lead to obesity. Due to social and work commitments, we often get insufficient sleep on weekdays and compensate by sleeping in on weekends. However, this can lead to long-term metabolic disorders, potentially promoting the onset or worsening the progression of type 2 diabetes.

Always keep moving.

Going to the toilet every morning is an effective way to improve your health. Constipation affects 1 in 7 adults at any given time and can lead to hemorrhoids, diverticulitis, bleeding, and discomfort.

Furthermore, in 2012, scientists from the American Gastroenterological Association reported a link between chronic constipation and an increased risk of developing colorectal cancer. Staying hydrated and exercising regularly also helps prevent constipation.

Regular blood tests

Cardiovascular disease causes more than a quarter of all deaths in the UK. One of the main risk factors is high levels of low-density lipoprotein – known as "bad" cholesterol – which can cause fat to build up in the artery walls.

Knowing your blood lipid levels can really motivate you to change your diet and exercise habits to reduce your risk of cardiovascular disease. Regular testing can help you better understand the impact of specific changes to your diet and exercise on your blood lipid levels.

Try fasting.

There is ample evidence to suggest that fasting is beneficial for health. Cardiac researchers at the Intermountain Medical Center's Cardiovascular Institute in Utah, USA, have found that periodic fasting not only reduces the risk of coronary heart disease and diabetes but also significantly alters a person's blood cholesterol levels. Both diabetes and high cholesterol are risk factors for coronary heart disease.

Eat eggs

Eating eggs is often thought to cause high cholesterol. But now, official advice from the British Heart Foundation says that eating up to one egg a day will not increase the risk of heart disease in healthy people, and can be part of a healthy diet. Eggs are also a particularly good source of folic acid, which may reduce the risk of stroke, according to a 2015 report by scientists from Peking University First Hospital in China.

According to Dantri