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1. Turn that Frown Upside Down

Did you know that stress can actually decrease how effectively your body absorbs nutrients? Smiling is beneficial to your health and can help to reduce stress levels. Studies have shown that “there are both physiological and psychological benefits from maintaining positive facial expressions during stress”. So, if you’ve got something to smile about, anything at all… go for it![/column] [column]

 

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2. Cut down on Caffeine

Even though caffeine has some health benefits like helping long term memory and reducing the risk of type 2 diabetes, let’s face it, everything is best in moderation. In the busy world of today, coffee is something a lot of us are addicted to. The queue at the HelloFresh coffee machine is testament to that! Try not to drink more than 2 cups a day, because too much caffeine can heavily effect the quality of your sleep and having a nice good sleep, is very important for your health.[/column] [/columns_row] [columns_row width=”half”] [column]

3. Appreciate the good things in life

A study  by Dr. Emmons of the University of California and Dr. McCullough of the University of Miami where they asked subjects to write on different topics concluded that “After 10 weeks, those who wrote about gratitude were more optimistic and felt better about their lives. Surprisingly, they also exercised more and had fewer visits to physicians than those who focused on sources of aggravation.”[/column] [column]

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4. Hydrate

Water is pretty important. I love it, but if you find it boring don’t forget you’ve got a lot of choice! Sparkling water adds a bit of excitement to the situation. Plus, although drinking fruit juice every few hours is a lot more sugar than you’d want, you can make your own batch of morning juices which include spinach, carrot or kale. They’ve got a high water content, so they’ll help to hydrate.

Here’s Victoria’s green juice recipe.

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5. Squeeze in those 5 fruit and veg a day

My childhood memories are crammed with quotes from my parents: “If you don’t eat your carrots you won’t be able to see in the dark” or “An apple a day keeps the doctor away”. I’ve always eaten fruit by the ton, but it was only when I got a bit older that I became more into vegetables. I wrote about getting your 5 a Day here.

For tricks on how to sneak them into your diet, read this.

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6. Home cooking is healthier

When you eat out or order in, whether you think it’s healthy or not, you genuinely have little idea what’s actually in it. An example – my favourite dhaal from my local Indian restaurant is amazing and delicious. When my mum makes dhaal it’s super healthy – nothing but spices, onions garlic, coconut milk and lentils. I recently found out the dhaal at my local contains 500ml of double cream. WHAAAAAAT?

Basically, if you cook it, you know what’s in it.

Make home cooking simple with our recipe boxes.

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