I hate the gym! You might too, but we have to stay in shape to keep our minds and bodies functioning at an acceptable level. Here are 12 simple practices that will keep us going well into the golden years, God willing.

Many claim that eating organic products means avoiding overly processed foods, thereby cutting hydrogenated oils, trans-fats, preservatives and other negative ingredients out of your diet. But lately the debate over fruits and vegetables seems to be taking center stage. The pesticides used on foods are currently a big concern for the health community, due to their many acute and chronic effects.

Each stage of sleep offers benefits to the sleeper. However, deep sleep is perhaps the most vital stage. It is the first stage that the brain attempts to recover when sleep deprived, and the strongest effects of sleep deprivation are from inadequate deep sleep.

Everyone has seen the recent headlines stating that too much ready meat is bad for your health! That’s because it has long been known it is associated with heart disease and cancer, particularly colon and rectal cancers. Now a new, large-scale study of 500,000 middle-aged and elderly Americans shows that daily red meat consumption, at levels of as little as four ounces a day, can increase your chances of death by 30 percent!

Loma Linda, Calif., is the only place in the United States where a large population enjoys startling longevity, with so many healthy 100-year-olds that it qualifies as what demographers call a statistical “blue zone.’’ The reason for the longevity: not miracle pills, and not starvation diets. Loma Linda is a center of the Seventh-day Adventist religion, which counsels its members to live pretty much the way your doctor would want you to.

IN THESE days of environmental degradation, health maintenance no longer means just an occasional visit to the hospital, but also a regular trip to the spa to de-stress.

Thus it didn’t take long for spa and natural medicine (as an alternative to drug prescription) to merge and offer a full range of wellness programs designed for health enhancement, disease prevention and sickness eradication.

As we become conscious of God’s desire to be glorified, honored, and served with our bodies, we become duty bound to work diligently on removing the bad and building the good habits needed to restore the “temple of God” that He has placed in our care.

The Adventist church has taught and followed the principles of healthful living for over 100 years. We were told that most of the diseases that plague mankind are passed through the common diet of meat, alcohol, tobacco. This was a very unpopular teaching for many years among the Christian community. There were alot of jokes about the Adventist people because of heir “strange” eating habits.

Holistic health means looking for the problem behind the disease, viewing the disease as only a symptom of a larger condition. Holistic choices include things like eating right, exercise, acupuncture, massage, sleeping well, meditation, herbal treatments, as well as many others. It also means looking at every aspect of a person, treating their minds, bodies, and souls, no matter what the current problem may be. The best part is that the benefits can be seen overall.