| IVL Products Health Watch - Helping Others Helps The Helper’s Health |
| The Official IVL Products Health Blog |
Dear Reader,
Helping others not only makes us feel good about ourselves
it can also have profound positive effects on our physical
health. The mind and body aren't separate. Anything we do to
elevate our spirits will also have a beneficial effect on
our health.
A recent study conducted by Cornell University found that
volunteering increases a person's energy, sense of mastery
over life and self esteem. Other studies have demonstrated
that these types of positive feelings can actually
strengthen and enhance the immune system. Positive emotions
increase the body's number of T-cells (cells in the immune
system that help the body resist disease and recover quickly
from illness). A Canadian study found that volunteering
leads to heightened self-esteem, self worth and
self-confidence. It also reduces heart rates and blood
pressure.
The positive emotions from volunteering release endorphins
into the bloodstream. Endorphins are the body's natural
tranquilizers and painkillers. They stimulate dilation of
the blood vessels, which leads to a healthier heart.
Michigan researchers who studied 2,700 people for almost ten
years found that men who regularly did volunteer work had
death rates two and one half times lower than men who
didn't. Part of this may be that the human need for
connections to other people is related to longevity. In a
large survey conducted in Alameda County in California,
researchers studied 5,000 people over a nine-year period.
The researchers found that those who were unmarried, had few
friends or relatives and shunned community organizations
were twice as likely to die during the nine-year period than
people who had close relationships. This was true regardless
of race, income, level of activity and other lifestyle
factors.
In their 2006 book titled Civic Engagement and The Baby
Boomer Generation, authors Laura Wilson and Sharon Simson
note several studies that link volunteering to a lower risk
of mortality and to better physical and mental health. They
found that people who volunteer at least 100 hours per year
have slower heart rates and better overall health. Asked to
describe the quality of their health, 85 percent of
volunteers reported their health as “good to very good"
while only 63 percent of the people who did not volunteer
gave the same answer. Two percent of the volunteers reported
their health to be “poor" while 11 percent of non-volunteers
described their health as "poor".
As one volunteer with arthritis put it: “I'm usually so
doggone busy, I can't figure out whether I have a pain or an
ache. I just keep right on going. If we have a little twinge
or something, we don't have time to pay attention to it so
consequently you don't tend to dwell on these little odds
and ends. I think you are healthier for it." If you know the
program is depending on you to be there, you can't allow
yourself to be sick and so you are more motivated to stay
well and in good physical condition.
In some cases it may be that volunteering provides the
motivation to get better, despite the odds against recovery.
“We have a volunteer who is actually a resident but that's
beside the point and she volunteers four days a week for
about four hours each day. She is in her eighties and she
broke her hip eight months ago. Everybody told her that she
would never get out of the chair. Well, she had a
responsibility to meet so she is now walking."
Perhaps the concept of volunteering is summed up best in
Susan Reznick's book titled The Pleasure Zone. “The one who
ends up getting the most from a good deed, may, ultimately,
be the good Samaritan.“
Yours in good health,
Sheila McCormick
Editor, IVL Health Watch
|
| Regenerate - renew - regrow!
Until now, scientists thought the thousands of brain
cells that die each year couldn't be replaced. But an
ancient remedy seems to regenerate nerves, according to a
recent clinical study.
We've taken this ancient herb and mixed it into a balanced
formula designed to help you keep 100% of your brainpower.
- Flower extract dilates your vessels, lets more blood
flow into your brain
- Herbal extract Vinpocetine improves brain's oxygen
use
- Natural Huperzine A protects cells against glucose
deprivation
- Super-Nutrient CDP Choline increases brain cell
energy
- Ancient Ayurvedic herb, Bacopa, protects brain from
free radicals
See how a 71-year-old could think and remember better
than a bunch of 25-year-old hotshots...
http://www.ivlonline.com/letter/mind-clear
|
The straightest path to lifelong health is simple:
Digest, Absorb, Eliminate, Renew!
Each day you depend upon your digestive
tract to feed and nourish every single cell and organ in
your body. A significant amount of your immune system
depends on the health of your digestive tract. Your GI tract
is your first line of immune defense.
Here's a little known fact that'll pay you big health
dividends:
70% of your immune system resides in your digestive tract.
The reality is that keeping your digestive system healthy,
keeps you robust and healthy. And if your digestive system
is weak and unpredictable, you suffer the effects and have
poor resistance to disease. Sadly, Americans have the
highest incidence of colorectal disease in the world.
Imagine this...
http://www.ivlonline.com/letter/groover
|
Visit our Health Forum and ask a question of one of the country’s leading experts in nutritional medicine. |
Dr.
Mikles is a Board Certified Internist, and is the Medical Director of
Choices Integrative Healthcare Clinic in Sedona, Arizona. For more than
30 years, Dr. Mikles has been engaged in the study and practice of the
therapeutic effects of diet and nutrition, making him one of the
country’s leading experts.
|
Brought to you by Institute for Vibrant LivingTM
To learn more about IVL, call 1-800-720-1245
or visit http://www.IVLProducts.com
|
Contact us by mail at:
Institute for Vibrant Living
P.O. Box 3840
Camp Verde, AZ 86322
|
|