Top Ten Tips to Optimum Health and Vitality from Michael Grossman, M.D., and Jodi Jones is the first practical book to pull together all of the key elements necessary for extending and improving one’s quality of life—from nutrition, supplementation, and exercise to managing stress and creating loving relationships. The book offers the authors’ “top ten tips” in each of ten key areas, and presents its often-surprising findings in a non-technical, highly readable format. In its pages, readers will discover the latest medical breakthroughs in conquering fatigue, balancing the immune system, and optimizing health and vitality. Top Ten Tips to Optimum Health and Vitality
targets baby boomers who are health-conscious, those are open to making lifestyle changes to battle the onset of aging-related diseases, and those who simply want to feel younger, look younger, and stay younger.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments

Introduction

Chapter 1:  Participate in an Anti-Aging Program

Chapter 2:  Create Loving Romantic Relationships

Chapter 3:  Develop and Execute a Stress Management Plan

Chapter 4:  Eat Well-Balanced Nutritious Meals

Chapter 5:  Perform a Healthy Kitchen Makeover

Chapter 6:  Supplement Your Diet with Quality Vitamins and Minerals

Chapter 7:  Conquer Fatigue

Chapter 8:  Balance Your Immune System

Chapter 9:  Detoxify Your Body

Chapter 10:  Commit to an Exercise Program

Following is a chapter summary for each of the ten chapters; the actual “top ten tips” for each chapter are not included in this brief overview.

      Men and women are vastly different when it comes to relationship styles, needs, and key success factors. For example, the single most critical skill for women to develop in order to improve their relationships is to learn to request specific things that their partners can do to make them happy. On the other hand, the most important relationship skill men need to learn is to be sensitive about feelings. When both partners make the effort to master these core skills, their reward will be a relationship abundant in joy and fun.

      The Top Ten Tips described in this chapter can help improve your relationship management skills dramatically and prevent relationship stress from eroding your health and compromising your immune system.

     Chronic stress can be a killer. Unless it is redirected in a positive direction, stress can lead to cardiovascular disease, cancer, gastrointestinal and neurological disorders, anxiety, depression, and immune system imbalances.

      The Top Ten Tips described in this chapter can help you identify stress management strategies and techniques that may work best for you, then assist you in integrating your chosen techniques into a workable stress management plan.

      The topic of nutrition is both complex and extensive. It has been studied for centuries and has been proven to contribute to optimum health and vitality. Medical evidence points to countless physical and mental diseases, as well as common illnesses, being a result of poor nutrition; on the flip side, good health and vitality has been linked to optimum nutrition.

      To make food a healing force rather than a destructive one, at every meal, it’s important to consume the recommended ratio of protein, carbohydrates, and “good” fats, as described throughout this chapter. Consume food wisely and mindfully, as food is medicine. Follow the Top Ten Tips below and eat your way to optimized health and vitality.

      Eating healthful nutritious foods needn’t be any more expensive or inconvenient than consuming junk food. You just need to organize your kitchen and learn a few basic techniques. Your reward for commitment can be a lifetime of feeling vibrant and disease free – as Hippocrates so judiciously surmised — food is medicine.

      Half of the nutritional battle is keeping the right foods and cooking tools stocked and ready for immediate and convenient use, while banning the wrong foods from your kitchen permanently. The Top Ten Tips described in this chapter give you all the information you’ll need about what to do and how to do it.

The nutritional value of cultivated foods is at an all-time low — and the consumption of processed and fast foods is at an all-time high. It’s just not possible to receive adequate nutrient value from the foods you eat. Everyone needs to take quality vitamin, mineral, and herbal supplements to make their diets complete in order to optimize health and vitality.

      Supplements may protect your DNA, improve mental acuity, enhance digestion, and aid in the prevention of cancer and many degenerative diseases, among other health benefits. However, you can’t just run to the local supermarket or drug store and buy the least expensive multivitamin brand off the shelf and expect to achieve noticeable results. There are numerous factors to consider before engaging in an effective supplementation regimen. The Top Ten Tips below provide highlights of what you need to know.

      The high stress of daily living produces fatigue in almost everyone. The first step to eliminating fatigue is to understand when you are fatigued and why. Keeping track of every instance of fatigue in a diary will give your health professionals the information they need to treat the root causes of your exhaustion.

      A physician can attack fatigue problems on many fronts and recommend treatments including prescription medicines, hormone therapy, and glandular extracts. To restore your energy level and banish fatigue, work closely with health professionals and observe the Top Ten Tips described in this chapter.

      Balancing your immune system is impossible without good gastrointestinal health. Trying to process anti-nutrients such as sugar can kick your immune system into overdrive and spread inflammation throughout your body, stressing your organ systems. When your diet is high in anti-nutrients, your immune system is easily thrown out of balance.

      Following the Top Ten Tips described in this chapter can get you on the road to restoration of your digestive system by helping you remove harmful bacteria, yeast, and parasites; replace digestive enzymes and/or hydrochloric acid; repopulate healthy gastrointestinal bacteria; and repair the cells of your intestinal lining.

      A key difference between a youthful person and an elderly one is their disparity in muscle mass. The benefits of exercise go beyond slowing down the aging process. By adopting a consistent fitness program, you can increase energy and endurance, build strength and flexibility, prevent many diseases, and improve your overall health and vitality. Some studies have even indicated that physical exercise is important for maintaining mental function and memory. Benefits of exercise are linked with proper nutrition and stress management.

      Be sure to devote several blocks of time per week to each of the three types of essential exercise: aerobic training, strength training, and flexibility training. Exercise is a healthy outlet and can be a lot of fun. It’s based on your attitude and frame of mind. Following the Top Ten Tips described in this chapter can ensure that you achieve slow and steady progress toward your fitness goals while maximizing optimum health and vitality.

1. Supplementation (dosage) recommendations for various illnesses
2. Recommended brands of supplements
3. Recommended skincare products (Sense’ and Dr. Nicolas Perricone’s line)
4. Healthy recipes with nutrition values (10)
5. Weekly menu (breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks)
6. Weekly recommended exercise plan
7. Glossary of terms
8. Recommended websites, organizations, and resources