Photo courtesy of Dasha Sakharova
By Dasha Sakharova
As I stood in line for salad, I noticed how long it was in comparison to other food court restaurants in East Commons. Did students favor the taste over other selections or did they make a decision to eat a healthy meal? I don’t know the reason – we are all very different in our preferences. But I do know that they all had one thing in common: every single one of them made at least one healthy choice today.
Have you ever given thought to how many of your daily choices ultimately affect your health? Whether it is choosing not to smoke, using a reliable form of birth control, throwing away a dubious piece of leftover lasagna that spent a week too long in the fridge or tackling stairs instead of waiting for an elevator — we make conscious healthy choices on the daily basis.
We have become so good at this “healthy living” thing that we even make subconscious decisions. Think of the first two hours to your day — you could easily skip brushing your teeth, showering, eating breakfast or exercising. But you don’t. You are so used to your morning routine that you don’t even realize you made a number of healthy choices before your brain even had a chance to wake up.
With the start of a new school year, academic and professional demands at times become too overwhelming that we often put aside one of the most important responsibilities of all: our own well-being.
My goal this semester is to encourage you to make more healthy choices at home and at school, to update you on pertinent health issues, and to promote simple steps we can all take towards healthier us.
So get started. Here are five things you can do at home right now to make it a healthier environment:
- Clean up your medicine cabinet and throw away expired medications.
- Move your toothbrush further away from the toilet’s splash zone.
- Wipe your keyboard and mouse.
- Put your kitchen sponge in the dishwasher or nuke it in the microwave for a minute.
- Take off your outside shoes and leave them by the door.
Click here for more tips.
Dasha Sakharova is a first year graduate student at the School of Public Health, studying Health Management and Policy. She prefers mints over gum, is allergic to most fruits and berries, is a tea-drinker and coffee-hater, and is passionate about health. Follow her @HealthyU_SDSU
We can also make sure we (and our friends) put the toilet seat down before flushing in order to prevent the splashing.
Great tips! I forget about wiping off my keyboard.
Indeed, we need to get in the habit of making healthy choices. I think it’s a good reminder that the little things count and they add up. I find that surrounding myself with people who have the same conviction helps too.
Theresa, that’s a good one on the toilet seat!! Thanks for the comment.
Martha, I agree with you on surrounding ourselves with people who have similar standards as we do. Studies show that one of the biggest motivators to lose weight and to have a better diet is social pressure. If friends around you lead a healthy lifestyle, you are more likely to do the same.