Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars
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About this ebook
The media is filled with conflicting studies and reports on what people should buy, eat or drink, and how they should act in order to achieve a fuller life. This innovative book takes the hype and the hassle out of good living, advising the reader to make simple choices - and consequently provides them with a quick and easy way to a healthier and happier life. Tackling everyday lifestyle choices - Heels or flats? Gin-and-tonic or a glass of wine? Manual or electric toothbrush? - Latte or Cappuccino? not only solves your daily dilemmas, but backs up its assertions with scientific evidence ... so you know without a doubt that you're making the right choice. Dither no more and decide on a better way of life.
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Diet & Nutrition
Personal Growth
LanguageEnglish
Publisher
Release dateJun 15, 2012
ISBN9781843178774
HJAuthor
Hilly Janes
Hilly Janes is an award-winning journalist. She has worked as a features editor and writer on national quality newspapers and magazines, including The Times, The Independent, The Guardian, The Observer, The Daily Telegraph and Prospect magazine and most recently as a consultant editor at Radio Times, the UK's leading TV listings magazine. Specializing in health, lifestyle, food and drink, fitness and parenting, she launched and edited the Times's acclaimed Body&Soul 24pp health section for six years, for which she won the prestigious Medical Journalists' Association health editor of the year award. The section also won the coveted Patients' Association patient information award. She has been a panellist or chair at many public events discussing health issues, such as the Cheltenham Literature Festival, the Bath LitFest and the Institute of Ideas. Hilly has taught media studies students at Goldsmith's university in London, where she was external examiner on the MA journalism degree course for four years, and she continues informally to mentor and support young women entering the profession. She is on the committee of the campaigning and networking organization, Women in Journalism, and chairs a sub-group that arranges its training seminars and VIP events. She now works as a freelance writer, editor, media consultant and speaker and lives in London with her husband and two children aged eleven and seventeen.
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- lydiasbooksRating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Some think it oversimplified or patronising, but as a gentle reminder to make little changes it works for me. It's easy to read; it makes suggestions rather than being an authority figure standing over you; it provides unexpectedly well-referenced research to back up its advice.
- wyvernfriendRating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Not bad. Though it takes out personal preference from the equation in many of the choices, it assumes that all choices are created equal. Yes there is more milk in a Latte but I prefer the taste. There are some things here that are interesting and would work well for most people but overall it didn't add much to my knowledge.
- infjsarahRating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5Short book focusing on current evidence of best decisions in a wide range of areas including nutrition and self-organisation.OK for what it is.I did love one quote in it though - "People who like meetings are those who don't enjoy getting things done" (Oliver Burkeman). p42.Yes, Yes, Yes.
Book preview
Latte or Cappuccino? - Hilly Janes
First Thing
A BAD START in the morning can leave you feeling grumpy and anxious well into the day. Think: you can’t find the right clothes, you’ve run out of milk and a child’s lost its homework – well, the stress mounts. A simple routine will set you up for whatever lies ahead.
Freshening Up
The decisions you make in your morning bathroom routine will perhaps be dictated by time constraints, with you or other members of the family queuing up to use the facilities. The good news is that most of the decisions you have to make here are pretty quick and time saving.
Shower OR bath?
Have you ever wondered why Scandinavians swear by taking a hot sauna, followed by a dip in freezing cold water? It’s because it’s thought to aid circulation – the heat brings the blood to the surface of the body and the cold drives it back to its core. Why not try jumping in the shower and adjusting the temperature of the water to help your circulation? It also has the added benefit of boosting the blood flow to your brain because your head is exposed to jets of water, and directing the hot water at stiff or painful muscles also acts as a type of massage.
Both a five-to-ten-minute bath or shower will add moisture to the skin, but any longer in the water may leave it less hydrated than it was before you started, according to the American Academy of Dermatology. To counteract the effects of a long soak in the bath or shower, the Academy recommends using a soap or body wash that contains moisturizer, and rubbing a moisturizing cream or lotion into still-damp skin when you’ve dried off.
Taking a shower, lifestyle gurus say, uses less water – a precious resource as the world population grows and developing countries’ demand increases. As personal hygiene accounts for about a third of water requirements in the UK, it makes sense to use as little as possible – but, as the UK’s Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) points out, a shower typically uses around nine litres a minute, and if we stand under it for more than ten, we might use more water than we would in a bath (which, depending on the size of your bath, uses about eighty litres). Keen greens can surf the Internet for shower timers and collapsible buckets to collect waste water for the garden or to wash the dog, in order to keep shower time as efficient as possible. Not such good news for lovers of a long, relaxing soak in the bath, so if that really is your preference see Last Thing on page here for tips on how to get the most out of one.
ANSWER: shower
Did you know?
. . . that the average water use in England is around 150 litres per person per day? That’s like 317 pints of milk on your doorstep. It is consistently higher than the average amount of water used in European countries such as Germany and Holland. In Germany, for example, average use per person per day is 127 litres.
Short- OR long-term hair removal?
There are so many ways of dealing with hairy legs, armpits and bikini lines, all with various pros and cons, that it’s hard to say which is right or wrong. For the short-term solution razors are quick and convenient for legs and underarms, but you probably wouldn’t want to use them on your bikini line or face. Shaving can also cause irritation, cuts and even infection if the razor is not kept clean. Shave in the direction of the hair growth, and make sure your skin is moist. Consider using a shaving oil (the type men use on their faces); apply body lotion afterwards to keep your skin soft and smooth.
As for supposed longer-term solutions, creams are messier and take longer to use but are a better option for smaller, sensitive areas. They work by dissolving the hair, turning it into a jelly-like substance that can easily be wiped away, and they contain moisturizers to soothe and soften the skin. While the chemicals they contain can be smelly, the industry has got better at masking this with fragrances and also developing different products such as roll-ons, sprays, and varieties that can be used in the shower. Regrowth is softer but not slower than it is with shaving, and creams may cause irritation or allergic reactions: always test on a small patch of skin. They are messier, more time-consuming and more expensive to use than a razor.
Waxing is good because it pulls the hair out from the root – ouch. For the faint-hearted, salon visits are the obvious option, but they are expensive, time-consuming and, of course, not something you would do every day. The same can be said of electrolysis and laser hair removal.
ANSWER: shave (where appropriate)
Did you know?
. . . that using a razor to shave your legs and armpits does not make the hair grow back faster than if you were using creams or lotions? Shaving does, however, make your regrowth feel more prickly as the hair has been sliced off at an angle. Creams and lotions, on the other hand, dissolve the hair, making the regrowth softer. Normal Caucasian hair growth rate is 1–1.25cm every twenty-eight days.
Hop on the scales OR measure your waist?
If you’re watching your weight and step on the scales in the morning, might you be better off reaching for the tape measure to work out if you’re piling on the pounds? Scientists are studying this intensively because of international concerns over obesity and the results can be confusing.
One way to assess whether or not you’re overweight is to calculate the Body Mass Index (BMI) – your weight in relation to your height. To work it out, divide your weight in kilos by your height in centimetres squared (or use imperial measures). Several websites do this for you – just Google ‘BMI’. A BMI of between 18.5 and 25 indicates a healthy weight.
Some doctors argue that waist circumference is the more useful standard by which to judge excess weight: ‘fat around the middle’ is the real danger sign. A fat tummy is likely to have fatty organs underneath it, which, particularly for the liver, can be dangerous.
While a March 2011 study by British doctors, for example, disagreed with this, a more recent one in June 2011 in the US said that waist measurement is a more reliable indicator of obesity-related problems like heart disease and diabetes: anything above 80cm (31.5 inches) for women and 94cm (37 inches) for men increases the risk. Not sure where your waist is? Find the top of your hip bone and the bottom of your ribs and wrap the tape around the halfway mark, near your belly button.
Which method to choose? To calculate your BMI you have to be good at mental arithmetic or have access to an online calculator. Alternatively, just admit that your jeans really are getting tighter and reach for a tape measure. Both will help you work out if you need to lose weight, but I know which I find easier.
ANSWER: waist circumference
Mouthwash OR floss?
Mouthwashes taste refreshing and are easy to use, but there is little evidence that they improve dental health, although those containing chlorhexidine, an antiseptic, can alleviate some infections. They should be used only for short periods, however, as they may stain your teeth. There is some evidence that mouthwash may help improve bad breath temporarily, and the rinsing and spitting motions will clear out little bits of debris after brushing.
Flossing is universally recommended by dentists for removing plaque and bacteria, and mouthwash is no substitute. Use floss in a circular motion – don’t saw up and down, which may damage your gums. Try the interdental brushes available from pharmacies if you find flossing tricky. It’s good to floss at least once a day, preferably before going to bed, but morning will do if you forgot to floss the previous evening.
ANSWER: floss
Manual OR electric toothbrush?
There is nothing intrinsically bad about a manual toothbrush. According to the British Dental Association, it’s the way you brush your teeth that counts: use small circular motions. An electric toothbrush makes this much easier, and if you buy one with a timer you’re more likely to keep going for the recommended two minutes’ minimum brushing time. An overview of studies by the Cochrane Collaboration (a respected international body that systematically reviews health research), comparing electric toothbrushes, suggests that those using rotation oscillation (where the brush head rotates in one direction, then the other) reduce gum inflammation and help with plaque removal. Some dentists recommend that the undertens stick to the manual type unless they are supervised: alone, they may just whiz the toothbrush around their mouths, defeating the object of cleaning each tooth slowly. That’s the worst of both
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