Over the years the most common question I have always been asked is with all the things on the shelf in health food stores, what do I really need? My answer to this question is always the same, "how do you feel?"
This really is the deciding factor when starting a supplement program. Many people will say I have been taking this and that for years, and my question is still always the same, "how do you feel?" The funny thing is so many people will say lousy, or tired, or just exhausted or I hurt, or I cannot sleep, I usually ask why do you keep doing something that does not work? And after they think for a second, most people say I do not know, habit I guess.
Well this is why today I want to give you a list of questions to ask yourself to see what areas you need to focus on, and you may find the questions to be things you never though could relate to how you feel. It basically gives you some guidelines or parameters to work with so you are not taking a stab in the dark, but instead hitting the nail on the head ,if you will.
1) Do you drink a lot of caffeine
2) Do you eat many servings of sugar?
3) Do you eat in between meals?
4) Are you a rollarcoaster dieter?
5) Do you have more than a couple meals served through the window of your car?
6) Do you starve yourself and then binge eat all night at home?
7) Do you eat when depressed?
8) Are you exercising?
9) Do you sleep well at night?
10) Are you an anxious person?
11) Does stress rule your life?
12) Are you moody, or negative all the time?
13) Do you eat at least three servings of vegetables daily?
14) Is your digestive system working correctly?
15) Are you on more than one medication?
16) Do you drink 8 glasses of water every day?
17) Do you work on computers daily and are your eyes healthy?
18) Is your blood pressure normal?
19) How are you hormonally?
20) Do you use antibiotics frequently?
21) Have you been to the dentist within the last twelve months?
22) Have you had bloodwork and a physical in the last year?
23) Do you work in a germ filled atmosphere at work?
24) Are you a happy person?
25) Are you always tired and running behind?
26) Do you have eliminations every single day?
27) Are your fingernails and hair healthy?
28) Have you ever taken vitamins on a regular basis?
29) Is your skin healthy and do you have adult acne?
30) Is your cholesterol normal or high?
31) Are you a diabetic, is it in the family and have you been tested?
32) Do you have a pet?
33) Do you travel frequently?
34) Do you bruise easily and do your gums bleed?
35) How is your memory and do you get headaches frequently?
36) Do you have a nervous stomach?
37) Do you have hobbies or activities you do outside of work?
38) Do you have seasonal allergies?
39) Do you watch a lot of television?
40) Are you a procrastinator?
41) Do you cook at home or eat out more often?
42) Do you study or taking classes or continuing education of any kind?
43) Have you switched careers in the last year?
44) Do you smoke or drink daily?
45) Have you gone through any surgery in the last year?
46) Do you now or have you ever had cancer and completed treatment?
47) Do you salt your food before tasting it?
48) Do you spend more time indoors or outdoors?
49) Are you a slow eater or do you eat on the run and quickly woof your food?
50) Have you always been nutritionally oriented or is this new?
This will be enough to get you started. I think you should print this and answer the questions. You yourself will find a pattern and will almost for certain link many of the problems you may be experiencing to your own bad habits. We sometimes are such creatures of habit that the craziest things become normal until you see them in print.
Make sure to hold on to these questions because every month I will add some more. This will let you get closer and closer to formulating your own areas that you will want to pay attention to. Something that drives me crazy is when you are told that one thing will do great for everyone, which is absurd because we are all different.
This list is also something to take with you when you start researching nutrition. If you are lucky enough to find someone nutritionally well versed and trained, they will be able to look at this list and give you a very focused nutritional program that you yourself will get great benefits from. If on the other hand, you go somewhere where the individual knows next to nothing ,kindly say thank you and leave and go somewhere else. Never feel obligated to compromise with your health, NEVER. Always feel that you are working with someone that is knowledgeable and knows about health situations and also medications and side effects, and is well versed in alternatives. I always tell everybody to ask yourself, would you let this person work with and make a vitamin supplement program for your mother? Hopefully you like you Mother and you would want a trusting individual to work with her. If your gut tells you yes, then give them a try.
Nutrition is like buying a car. Not everybody will fit in a corvette, some people need a truck, an SUV, or an economy car. The great thing is when you ask yourself questions and get a better grip on your own health, you actually narrow down the choices, which is a good thing.
Good luck...
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