Working out or going to the gym every day before work can be a big challenge, but it will help you stay more consistently energized during the workday. If you typically get groggy in the afternoon, try this five-day experiment. Schedule a 20-minute brisk walk during your lunch hour or early afternoon. This routine will cause you to feel more awake, less sluggish, and less likely to doze off in the afternoon, thereby raising your productivity.

Prevention through screening could save the lives of 60 percent or more of those who will be diagnosed. Could you be one of them? The key myth about colorectal screening is than an unpleasant sigmoidoscopy or colonoscopy is the only way it's done. Talk to your doctor about an at-home smear test called a fecal occult blood test. This test is not a substitute for a colonoscopy, especially if you have had polyps found in a past colonoscopy. However, this test could still have your life if there is…

The United States Preventive Services Task Force (part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services) has recently announced its newest recommendation which is that medical doctors routinely screen for depression, especially in children, young adults, and women who have recently been pregnant. Depression has many symptoms, but in early stages it may be barely noticeable. Feeling less excited about things than you once were or experiencing sleep disturbance or a loss of energy are a couple…

Ask you doctor about Vitamin D, and whether you need more of it. Most people think of Vitamin D as the "bone vitamin," but there's a lot more to it. Some medical experts believe Vitamin D is more like a hormone than a vitamin. Only the recently has the big news emerged: Vitamin D has role in helping prevent many serious diseases and illnesses. The discovery of vitamin D's benefits was a top-ten medical breakthrough in 2007. Sunlight is our primary source of Vitamin D; however, the risk of skin…

Have you seen the term "mindfulness" online, off-line, and in the health news? Mindfulness is an approach to well-being and health that entails learning how to pay attention in the moment and gain improved self-awareness using techniques like slow breathing, focused concentration, and meditation to relax, gain control over anxiety and depression, deal with fears, reduce stress and pain, and improve concentration. Mindfulness helps you feel centered, helps you slow down, makes you less reactive…

New research suggest a 30-minute nap is all it takes to reserve the hormonal impact of night of poor sleep. This is the first study that found napping could "restore biomarkers of neuroendocrine and immune health to normal levels." Lack of sleep is recognized as a public health problem. Insufficient sleep can contribute to reduced productivity as well as increased vehicle and industrial accidents, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. People who sleep too little are…

Change can come fast, so develop this teachable life skill. Start by asking yourself some questions: 1) When sudden and unexpected change happens, do you quickly consider healthy actions in order to adapt to it with as little delays as possible? 2) Are you willing to be flexible in the choice of actions you must take? The best choice may not be the easiest or the least stressful in the short run. 3) Do you decide what you want from the change, which could be something entirely different, and…

Group therapy employs small-group interaction to help participants address mental health issues and make changes in their lives. Professionally-led group therapy focuses on problems like overcoming life struggles, eliminating self-defeating behaviors, and preventing the repeat of problems experienced in relationships. Don't overlook group psychotherapy as an avenue of help for rapid change. Group therapy members usually bond quickly, and the leverage they create is the collective insight and…