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In today's fast-pace world, who has time to worry about health? There is just too much to do. With the demanding responsibilities of school and work, it becomes stressful just to squeeze in time to relax. Tight schedule tactics are key. As every shrewd planner knows, the maintenance of personal health is essential. Health problems will most often monopolize the calendar. Proactive actions take up less time in the long run. It is never too early or late to start taking care of your health. There is no time to wait.

Good health is really not complicated. The ingredients of a healthy lifestyle can be outlined into six basic categories:

- Eat foods with high fiber, low saturated-fat, and low sugar. Diets should regularly meet all levels of essential nutrients. Fruits and vegetables should be incorporated into meals and snacks whenever possible.
- Include vitamins and supplements into daily diet.
- Exercise regularly.
- Schedule regular physical examinations.
- Balance work and social activities.
- Avoid beginning and eliminate rapidly unhealthy lifestyle habits.

Good health is not a fad. Rather, it should be practiced throughout the entire life cycle. Here are some age-focused priorities:

20 Years and Under:

This group is at the most advantage. By starting sound habits now, teenagers have the power to set foundations for a long and happy future.

The first thing to remember is that growth is still occurring. Growing muscles and bones require a healthy diet. However, as modern food processing often strips foods of vital nutrients, vitamins and supplements become a necessary diet component. A good multi-vitamin is a great place to start. Research continues to find more and more on the impact of diet/exercise in the reduction of major health problems such as obesity and cancer. Boys should regularly engage in both cardiovascular and long-endurance activities. Organized athletics provide an excellent way to combine exercise with social opportunities.

Examinations should include a yearly physical and regular eye and dental exams. In later years, various other exams should begin. Starting at fifteen years of age, teens should give themselves monthly testicular exams to check for painless lumps connected with testicular cancer. At eighteen, routine electrocardiograms and monthly self melanoma exams should begin.

Life should be balanced between a variety of school and social activities. However, while social settings are an important component of life, they also have a tendency to increase one's contact with high-risk behaviors. Proper education on matters such as alcohol, cigarettes, other drugs, as well as sex education greatly reduce future addictions and severe health problems.

Begun early, a healthy lifestyle has a greater chance at lasting effects. While people are more likely to continue early-rooted practices, healthy beginnings fortify the body for the years ahead.

20 to 40 Years

Beginning in the early twenties and continuing to early middle-life, men need not only to continue the good heath practices of earlier ages, but also to aid the body in its resistance of stress and other increasing health risks.

As young adults participate in higher education and in the work force, responsibilities widen and time becomes an increasing factor. Fast food often serves as the most convenient diet choice. However, a healthy diet and exercise are essential to counteract increasing threats of heart disease and cancer. A diet low in fat is crucial. The need for supplements heightens. Schedules will interfere with healthy meal plans. As vitamins and supplements substitute for missing nutrients, they also help assist in the reduction of health risks. Busy schedules will inevitably place a strain on the immune system. With an appropriate vitamin and herbal plan, aligned with an individual's unique make up, illnesses will reduce and energy will maximize.

Substance use should be kept at the lowest possible level. Caffeine intake should remain moderate. If effects such as anxiety, headaches, insomnia, and heart palpitations result, men should reduce/eliminate levels and should see a physician for persisting symptoms. Since cigarettes harm lungs and increase heart disease and cancer, they should be avoided at all times. Ideally, alcohol consumption should not exceed three standard-size drinks a day. While causing a large percentage of male fatalities, such as liver implications and driving accidents, alcohol and drugs play a large role in issues such as domestic violence. Healthy relationships are crucial in the reduction of stress and loneliness.

Men at this time are highly susceptible to heart disease, strokes, and other serious health issues. Blood pressure and cholesterol levels must be closely monitored. At twenty-one, men should begin checking their blood-pressure annually. If readings show 140/90 and over, regular testing should be increased. At thirty-five, cholesterol tests should begin. Tests should be repeated at least every five years. With the avoidance of hypertension, high-blood pressure, and of high levels of cholesterol, men can greatly improve their quality and longevity of life.

Health risks do increase during this time of life. Nevertheless, a healthy lifestyle will greatly reduce threats and increase the assurance of a high quality of life.

40 Years and Beyond:

There is no reason to let preventable health risks interfere with the quality of life. Tests for cholesterol and blood pressure should continue. Healthy diets often need a doctor monitoring for warning signs such as high blood sugar levels. Vitamin and supplements are crucial. While relieving risks and reducing problems, they greatly ensure the transition and preservation in life's later years. While activity may eventually need to decrease, a doctor will most likely prescribe the continuation of some form of exercise.

Men should begin scheduling exams for two high health risks at age fifty. The components of a colorectal exam should range from one to ten years. With early discovery, colorectal cancer is easily treated. Prostate cancer is the most common form for men. An annual PSA blood test and a Digital Rectal Exam are used for cancer discovery. Doctors often suggest more frequent testing for people with a family history of prostate cancer and/or those of African American ethnicity.

With the combined efforts of individually appropriate diets, exercise, and exams and of healthy companionship, men can enjoy healthy maturity into the late years of life.

Too often the hectic nature of life causes men to overlook the importance of maintaining good health. However, with good habits including a diet full of healthy foods, vitamins, and supplements, a regular exercise program, and physical exams, a healthy lifestyle is not only attainable but also essential for every man. There should always be time for health.