Helping Yourself Stay Well

It is much better to keep yourself healthy rather than fall ill and need medical care so look after yourself: 

Healthy Diet:

Eat less

• Sugar
• Fat 
• Salt 

Eat more

• Fibre
• Fish
• White meat. 

Drink less alcohol.

Alcohol:

Men can drink up to 28 units a week

Women can drink up to 21 units a week

A unit = 1/2 pint of beer = Pub measure of spirits = Pub glass of wine

= Small glass of sherry

Smoking – Why Stop?

A man aged 50 who smokes 20 a day is four times more likely to die from heart disease than a non-smoker of the same age. Lung cancer kills 38,000 people a year in the UK. Each cigarette shortens your life by five to six minutes. It makes your children ill – they are twice as likely to get chest and ear infections. CLICK HERE to go to our more detailed smoking cessation advice. 

Exercise:

It helps to reduce weight. It helps to relieve stress. It makes you feel and look better.

Once you have found a form of exercise you enjoy, do it:

• Often enough - Two or three times a week for 20-30 minutes
• Hard enough - To make you feel breathless (Suitable for patients with no significant health problems. Check with your GP or Practice Nurse))
• Long enough - It must become part of your life for good. 

Remember: If you are not used to exercise start slowly and build up gradually. Both doctors and nurses will be happy to advise you and your family about these important changes.

Stamina Ratings:

• Badminton** 
• Housework (moderate)*
• Canoeing***
• Jogging****
• Climbing Stairs***
• Judo**
• Cycling (hard)****
• Mowing lawn by hand**
• Dancing (ballroom)*
• Rowing****
• Dancing (disco)***
• Sailing*

• Digging the garden**
• Squash*** 
• Football***     
• Swimming (hard)***
• Golf*  
• Tennis**
• Gymnastics** 
• Walking (briskly)**
• Hill Walking***          
• Weightlifting*
• Cricket*          
• Yoga**

* Not much effort ** Beneficial effort *** Very good effort **** Excellent effort