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The Perfect Gift-- How to give the gift of health

By Carol Klingsmith, RN, CES

Do you ever spend time looking for the perfect gift for someone you love. How about the gift of health. If I could choose the perfect gift, I would choose the gift of good health. Do you realize what a tremendous gift that would be. If you have your health you can do anything. Without your health, all the money in the world doesn’t mean a thing.

Good health you say, but that’s not a gift. You can’t always choose good health. You don’t always know when you will get cancer or have a heart attack. I agree you don’t always know when you will hear those dreaded words, “you’ve got cancer,” but if you neglect your body over the years it is not a matter of if you will hear those words, but a matter of when.

One of my greatest passions is to help people understand that the majority of today’s diseases are caused by what we either put in or on our bodies or what we are exposed to. And it starts in infancy.

We watch our baby every minute she’s in the bath so she doesn’t hurt herself, while we shampoo her hair with antifreeze and engine degreaser and other potentially toxic chemicals that could harm her developing eyes, irritate her skin, and be potentially carcinogenic. It isn’t that we are bad parents. We just refuse to believe that our government would allow unsafe ingredients like these in products we can buy at the store. Especially those made for children.

Well, these unsafe ingredients are everywhere. They are in many foods we eat and products that we use everyday on our bodies and around our house. Next time you reach for your shampoo look at the label.

Look for sodium laurel sulfate and sodium laureth sulfate. They are engine degreasers that have been shown to impair hair growth, irritate the skin, and impair structural formation of young eyes. From skin contact alone the body stores this potentially toxic chemical in the heart, liver, lungs, and brain. Propylene glycol is implicated in contact dermatitis, kidney damage, and liver abnormalities.

Have you ever asked yourself why there is a warning label on your toothpaste. WARNING: Keep out of the reach of children under 6 years of age. If you accidentally swallow more than used for brushing, seek professional assistance or contact a poison control center immediately.

Is this the type of product you want to put in your mouth, next to your mucous membranes (where substances are absorbed directly into the blood stream) every day, 2 to 3 times per day, for the net 60, 70 or 80 years? Is it any wonder why so many people hear the words, “You’ve got cancer.”

Maybe it’s because of my age, but it seems that I am suddenly surrounded by an epidemic of friends and family that have strokes, cancer, fibromyalgia, multiple sclerosis or even mystery diseases. And each time I hear them say, “I just don’t understand how this could happen to me. I have always been so healthy. I was fine until I hit 52 and then I started falling apart.”

The truth is you neglected yourself for 30 to 40 years and these years of neglect are now culminating in disease. The only connection I see between age and disease is that living longer provides more opportunity for neglect. Most of us come into this world in an absolutely amazing, healthy body. Then the neglect starts. We don’t mean to neglect ourselves, but we are busy living our lives.

When it comes to our health and taking care of ourselves we are also cheap. We will spend $15,000 to $20,000 plus on an automobile and additional dollars taking care of it to ensure that it runs efficiently. At the same time we refuse to buy organic because that head of lettuce costs an extra $1.00. Unfortunately, we end up spending much more than that extra dollar in treating future disease.

I truly see our culture as suffering not from cancer, heart disease, and stroke, but as a culture suffering from the disease of neglect. I feel our present condition comes mainly from neglect in three areas—food, water, and exercise.

The good news is that these are three of the most inexpensive gifts you can give, they reap tremendous benefits, and result in thousands of dollars in savings over the years. You ask but how do I give these gifts. Well, to have the most impact you must give them to yourself.

This quote by Jim Rohn has become my words to live by and as my gift I am sharing them with you in hopes that they might impact your life-- “I will take care of me for you, if you will take care of you for me.” I think it should be part of every marriage vow.

What an extraordinary gift to give your spouse, your children, your grandchildren. The fact that you will start taking care of you for me. Because you choose to take care of yourself, your daughter won’t have to give up her life for 10 years to take care of you at the same time that she is raising her own family. Your grandchildren will be able to go fishing with you, instead of coming to visit you in the nursing home.

I hope this article has made you think and that you now have an interest in turning around that path of neglect. If you are ready to end the pattern of neglect here are four things you can do starting today that will positively impact your health.

About the Author:

Carol Klingsmith is a registered nurse, Gold Certified Clinical Exercise Specialist and Lifestyle and Weight Management Consultant with the American Council on Exercise (ACE). She writes a monthly column, The Wisdom of Wellness and is one of the authors in a soon to be released book, titled "101 Great Ways to Improve Your Health." Her website is www.carolswellness.com.