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Category: Health

The PINK PLEDGE + 5 Easy tips to increase health and happiness

This month our society will be invaded by pink everything… pink ribbons, pink football socks, pink headbands, pink flags; pink to represent breast cancer awareness and advocacy. It is easy to be distracted by the mass amounts of pink without really picking up on what it is representing or what we each can do to join the brigade in a meaningful way.

To give you a little update on what the pink movement is all about, here are a few Breast Cancer facts:

Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women in the US, affecting about 1 in 8 women
246,660 new cases of invasive breast cancer are expected to be diagnosed in 2016
• Death rates from breast cancer have been decreasing since 1989. These decreases are thought to be a result of advanced treatments, early detections, and increased awareness (hence the pink)

SO the pink really is FOR something. It is being flaunted this October to make more of us aware of how much of an effect breast cancer has on our society, honor those who have been affected by the disease, and to better support the outreach programs, research, treatments, and detection techniques to help save lives in the future.

Being aware of how real this disease is is scary! The likeliness of personally being affected by this disease at some point in my lifetime, or knowing someone else who is, is too high for my comfort. There are tons of considerations to take but what will really make a difference? What can each of us focus on to truly make a difference in our health and happiness (which are inherently intertwined)?

I have been involved with Boarding For Breast Cancer for almost a decade now. This nonprofit aims to help educate the youth about breast cancer and how a healthy active lifestyle can prevent cancer. I TRULY believe in this model, health is wealth and being educated about the issues and taking steps to increase health when we have the foundation of health is the BEST way to keep our bodies happy. Aim to leave no room for question or diseases like cancer to take over in our lives!

Here are my top 5 health and happiness tips to incorporate into life. Hopefully these will make at least a small difference in helping your mind, body, and soul stay healthy, happy, flourishing… and most importantly cancer free. :)

CHECK YOURSELF – The single most important tool for surviving breast cancer is early detection. Learn how, when and how often to check yourself. It takes 5 minutes and might be the most important self-care 5 minutes of your month.
* If you can’t remember on your own, here’s an app to help remind you!

GET OUTSIDE, multiple times a day- Indoor air is more likely to have a higher concentration of gases, pollutants, and worst exposure to carcinogens due to inadequate ventilation and higher temperatures. Fresh air, (even just standing outdoors for one minute) fills your body with more oxygen and helps decrease the concentration of gases and particles in your body.

LAUGH – We all have felt the physical and psychological effects of a good laugh. Laughter can bring a fresh frame of mind, fresh oxygen in our blood stream, and a good stomach muscle workout. What is NOT to love about laughing?

GO NON-TOXIC – Toxins constantly surround us, there is just no way around it, they are in everything. The best thing that we can do is make choices to not increase the toxins we are exposed to by choosing non-toxic products. Non-toxic beauty products and cleaning products are the most important.
Beauty products because our skin is our biggest organ and absorbs everything, especially the toxins in the soap, lotion and other products you slather on.
Cleaning products because we often clean the places that we spend the most time and are the most exposed to; the kitchen counter that we eat off of, the bathroom that we wash in, and the sheets or clothes that we climb into.

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PLAY – We all know that exercise is important. What I think is not highlighted enough in today’s society is playing! Playing IS exercise and not only gets your body moving but also releases that lightheartedness in all of us, and just makes you feel like a kid again. Enjoying movement with no specific agenda or goal, just to enjoy the moment. Not many people make time for this anymore… Dance, play with kids, play soccer, jump rope or play hopscotch, play tag, wrestle in the backyard! Whatever it is do something that makes you laugh, moves your body, and reminds you to not take life so seriously. Feel the endorphins boost, the good vibes flow, and the health and happiness skyrocket ☺

To help fundraise, volunteer or donate to the cause and be apart of the solution for breast cancer head on over to B4BC.org/getinvolved Every little bit helps!

 

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  • Aline

    I am investing a lot in my personal development and my lifestyle, to improve my life and to be happier. Thank you for the tips.

    • elenahight

      Yay! That is so fabulous. We all need to take care of ourselves. Commit to ourselves. We are all we have after all :)

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