Everyone wants the best for themselves and their families. When you look to the future, you don’t have to hope for their happiness and wellness. Use these smart tips for your family’s health this year and you’ll ensure that they’re getting the most out of life.
Your family’s wellbeing depends on more than getting health insurance and going for annual check-ups with your preferred physician. These strategies start healthy habits that turn into better choices, so every day is a chance to make this your best year yet.
1. Spend Time Outdoors
After staying cooped up inside during 2020, you’re probably ready to get back outdoors. Take your family with you for local nature walks or backyard games. The fresh air and sunshine improves your mood and gives you a few natural benefits.
Sunshine provides natural vitamin D, which reduces your risk of stroke by preventing heart disease. Your body also becomes stronger with more exercise. As long as you don’t lie around outside or get sunburnt, you’ll move more and improve your family’s health.
2. Make a Breakfast Routine
Kids know that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, but no one explains why. When people eat whole foods and not processed junk food, they prevent long-term weight gain and avoid the adverse health effects of obesity.
Make breakfast fun this year by starting a new routine. Try a new meal every week and ask your kids to help you make it. Once they find something they love, eating breakfast won’t seem like a chore.
3. Remember Your Dental Health
Dental health is just as important as any other aspect of your physical health. Between trips to the dentist, prevent enamel wear and tear. Drinking coffee or acidic beverages stains your enamel and wears it down. Enamel absorbs tannis because it’s porous, resulting in stains and heightened sensitivity.
Encourage your family members to drink beverages through straws and brush their teeth regularly to protect their dental health between professional cleanings.
4. Ditch the Sugar
Maybe you already limit how often your kids eat sugar. That’s a great start to preventing health issues, but what about added sugars? Manufacturers put added sugars into food and categorize them differently on nutrition labels, slipping them past watchful consumers to appeal to their sugar-driven taste buds.
Double-check the nutrition labels in your household. You’ll find added sugars in foods you don’t expect. You might buy yogurt for the probiotics, but some brands contain six teaspoons of sugar per serving. These hidden sugars dig into your teeth and spike your blood sugar. Get products labeled “no added sugar” to avoid a host of health complications.
5. Get Your Vaccinations
Kids need regular vaccinations during their first five to six years of life, then a few more when they get older. Your family’s pediatrician can explain the recommended vaccination timeline and how it prevents diseases like diphtheria and pertussis.
While you’re scheduling appointments, don’t forget about flu shots. One of the smart tips for your family’s health this year is getting the annual flu shot to avoid hospitalization if or when you or your kids become sick.
6. Start an Exercise Challenge
Telling your children to go outside and run around doesn’t sound as fun to today’s generation. They have a world of entertainment at their fingertips with video games, phones and computers. Instead, get the entire family involved by starting an exercise challenge.
Think of a routine exercise your family would enjoy. Maybe you can go for evening bike rides together or play hopscotch on the driveway. Whoever completes the challenge of exercising a specified number of times each week can win stickers or a new book from their favorite author.
Daily exercise strengthens muscles and improves heart function — two things people can benefit from at any age.
7. Improve Your Communication
If kids and parents feel like they can’t talk to each other, those issues cause tension and stress. Create a safe environment for communication by improving how you talk to each other with tips like:
- Listening without interrupting
- Refraining from immediate judgments
- Avoiding emotionally charged language
When people live with long-term stress, it contributes to serious health conditions such as insomnia and digestive problems. Everyone should feel safe and welcome at home, especially when they want to speak up or ask questions.
8. Grow Indoor Plants
Health tips don’t always involve eating or exercising. Sometimes growing indoor plants is enough to protect your family. Picking the right plants makes your home a healthy place for everyone to live. Look into growing plants that absorb impurities, like garden mums and spider plants.
These plants reduce allergens and bacteria in your home. They’ll make your indoor air safer to breathe, which could make all the difference during the height of flu season.
Transform Your Family’s Health This Year
Your family will enjoy the coming year if you use these smart tips to make life better for everyone. Get active, eat better and start healthy habits. You’ll teach your children to continue these things when they leave the nest and ensure their wellbeing until then.
