Don’t Distress Over Stress

“Stress is life. Life is stress,” says Dr. Esther Sternberg, Director of the Integrative Neural Immune Program at the U.S. Government’s National Institute of Mental Health. You can’t avoid stress, but although you might think of it only in negative terms, a little bit of stress can actually add excitement to your life and it’s essential for keeping you motivated. Too much stress, however, leads to distress, and that, according to many health researchers, can have negative effects on your immune system. People in distress also tend to secrete an overabundance of the stress hormone cortisol, with numerous health consequences including heart disease, stroke, obesity, respiratory disease, chronic inflammation, sleep disturbances, migraine and tension headaches, and even accident proneness.Distress can also affect your performance at work, at play, or at school. Dr. Elizabeth Droz, Director of Student Counseling at Binghamton University, lists some major causes of distress:

Change – Any change (either positive or negative) that requires adaptation to your daily routine can cause overproduction of the stress hormones that can lead to distress.

Attitudes – Negative, critical, fearful, and/or pessimistic attitudes about yourself or others can cause emotional distress. That can lead to “sickness behavior,” in which the sufferer loses interest in work, daily activities, and social interaction.

Poor Nutrition – An imbalanced diet causes physiological distress, reducing the body’s ability to maintain itself and to resist disease.

Lack of Physical Fitness – Exercise is more than just building muscle. It also tones the vital organs and promotes the flow of stress-fighting brain chemicals.

Other causes of distress include bad relationships, boredom, noise pollution, congested travel and living conditions, and economic pressures. All of these common conditions can wreak havoc on your health and well-being.

How can you help yourself to de-stress instead of distress? Here’s what the experts at the National Institutes of Health recommend:

1. Identify the things in your life that cause you stress: relationship problems, conflict at work, a death or illness in the family. Once you know what’s stressing you out, you can begin to figure out ways to change your environment and manage your stressors.
2. Take control of stressful situations. If there’s a problem that can be solved, it is better to solve it now than to let it become a chronic and distressing annoyance.
3. Manage those chronic stressors that you can’t control. Support groups, relaxation, meditation, and exercise are all tools you can use to manage your stress. If nothing you do seems to work for you, seek a health professional who can help. Also seek professional help if you find that you worry excessively about the small things in life.
4. Drink 4 ounces (120 ml) of GoChi every day!

Usual Dosage Level
Research suggests a daily usage of 2 to 4 ounces of high-quality standardized goji juice, taken with meals or before exercise.

DISCLAIMER: The article is to provide information on goji berry (“Lycium Barbarum”). No brand name are ever mentioned or promoted. The information contained within is collected from extracts of educational material from the latest scientific evidence available in the internet and public domain. No statements herein have been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. The product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

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Looking for Sharper Focus and Concentration?

How many times has this happened to you? It’s a special occasion, and you’ve somehow managed to secure reservations at the hottest restaurant in town. You’re full of happy anticipation as you drive along the freeway and then suddenly, for no apparent reason, traffic slows to a crawl. After creeping along for what seems like hours, you finally reach the source of the slowdown: a minor “fender bender” in the opposite lanes of traffic. For some reason, hundreds of your fellow drivers had become so distracted by this that they lost focus and concentration, and as a result, you’ve lost your precious dinner reservations!

Life certainly provides plenty of distractions, and as the above scenario illustrates, it can be very easy to lose focus. But how do you explain not being able to concentrate when you’re sitting at home or in your office with no outside distractions, and yet you still can’t seem to finish a task that you’ve started? The inability to focus or concentrate affects even the most disciplined of people (with the possible exception of the superhuman Tiger Woods). Here are some reasons why you might be having trouble staying in sharp focus:

Inadequate sleep:
Many experts recommend 7 to 9 hours of restful sleep daily, and even more for growing kids. And yet, more than 60 million people in the United States experience sleep-related complaints. Many poor sleepers don’t know that they have a problem because their bodies have adjusted. Your body may be willing, but you can’t fool your brain. Brain fatigue will rob you of the focus and concentration you need to perform at your peak.

Boredom or lack of interest:
Your concentration may be fading simply because you just aren’t interested enough in what you’re supposed to be concentrating on. It can be pretty difficult to muster up enthusiasm for plugging endless numbers into a spreadsheet, or for attacking your daily chores.

Stress and frustration:
If you’re feeling overwhelmed by difficult or worrisome issues, it can be almost impossible to zone in on one task without being distracted by the weight of your other unfinished business.

Medical causes:
Talk to your doctor if you suspect you may be dealing with one of these issues:

• Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD) : This disorder involves abnormal brain chemistry, affecting your ability to focus and concentrate. Although usually encountered in children, ADHD can affect adults as well.
• Thyroid Problems : Although difficult to diagnose, feeling restless and anxious, being unable to concentrate, and having a poor memory could all indicate thyroid trouble.
• Diabetes : Your brain requires a constant flow of glucose for energy, which it receives from your blood. If your blood sugar levels are elevated or crashing, you’ll be left feeling tired and unable to focus.
• Depression : When you’re depressed, it can be nearly impossible to think clearly, or to find the energy and motivation to concentrate.

So what can you do to regain sharp focus and concentration? If you have a medical condition, you owe it to yourself to seek professional help. And for the rest of you, try these helpful tips!

• Get more sleep . Either get to bed earlier or take a mid-afternoon power nap, and you’ll dissipate that brain fog.
• Banish boredom . Research shows that concentration drops after 20 to 30 minutes, so take frequent breaks, making sure to get out of your chair to keep blood flowing to your brain. Bribe yourself with a reward once you finish your task. Treating yourself will feel extra good because you’ll also have the feeling of accomplishment that comes from a job well done.
• Get organized . Make sure that you have everything you need to complete the task at hand. If you’re poorly prepared, the extra time and effort needed to get the job done will make you lose focus more easily. Don’t distract yourself by trying to work with the television or radio on, or with your computer’s instant messaging program running.

• Write it down . If you can’t get unfinished tasks out of your head, write them down so you’re free to stop obsessing over them. Your to-do list should include an estimate of how much time it will take for each item. That will really help you to prioritize your day.
• Fight through frustration to help manage stress . In the same way that champion athletes can get their second wind, you can fight through mental frustration to find renewed focus. From now on, if you’re in the middle of a task and tempted to give up, noted author and lecturer Sam Horn recommends that you just do five more. Read five more pages. Finish five more math problems. Work five more minutes.
• Don’t procrastinate . As R.D. Clyde said, “It’s amazing how long it takes to complete something we’re not working on.” Delaying a task will only make it occupy more of your mind and time.
• Drink 4 ounces (120 ml) of GoChi every day!

GoChi® –Clinical study participants report experiencing improved focus and concentration.

For countless generations, the people of Asia have used the goji berry daily in their quest for sharp mental focus and intense concentration. No goji product is more potent than FreeLife’s GoChi, and now its wide-ranging benefits have been clinically demonstrated in three clinical studies. In a recent, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled human trial, test subjects drinking a daily serving of just 4 ounces (120 ml) of GoChi reported experiencing significant improvement in focus and mental acuity, as well as reduced feelings of stress and better sleep quality, all in as little as 14 days!

This groundbreaking clinical study has been published in the highly regarded Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine (JACM), and it can also be viewed on the U.S. Government’s encyclopedic PubMed website at www.pubmed.gov. The acceptance of our study by the independent experts of a peer-reviewed publication such as JACM represents a first for a functional juice beverage in the Direct Selling industry, and it demonstrates FreeLife’s ongoing commitment to supporting its claims with solid scientific research.

Bring your world into focus, with GoChi!

REFERENCES:

“Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder .” National Institute of Mental Health. National Institutes of Health. April 3, 2008.

Battaglia E. “Zoning In – Improving Your Concentration .” LifeScript.com website.

Horn, S. About.com: Alternative Medicine. “Top 5 Tips to Improve Your Concentration .” Available at http://altmedicine.about.com/od/optimumhealthessentials/a/Concentration.htm

Amagase H, Nance DM. A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled, Clinical Study of the General Effects of a Standardized Lycium barbarum (Goji) Juice, GoChi™ . J Altern Complement Med. 2008; 14(4), pp. 403-412. Abstract available on PubMed at http://www.pubmed.gov (PMID: 18447631)

Click here for alternative of natural nutritional food that will increase your energy, stamina and athletic performance

Click here for Goji berry opportunities

How to Win the Fight Against Fatigue

In other Health Watch articles, we’ve talked about the many energizing benefits of restful sleep. But even if you are getting plenty of sleep and are not feeling drowsy, you may still be suffering from fatigue. There’s a difference – in general, drowsiness is feeling the need to sleep, whereas fatigue is a lack of energy and motivation, often accompanied by apathy (a feeling of indifference or not caring about what happens). Fatigue is disruptive and interferes with all aspects of daily living. In the United States, fatigue results in about 10 million doctor visits each year.

Fatigue can be a normal and important response to physical exertion, emotional stress, or boredom. However, it can also be a sign of a more serious psychological or physical disorder. Some of the more common of these are:

• An allergy that leads to hay fever or asthma
• Anemia (including iron deficiency anemia)
• Depression or grief
• Sleep disorders such as ongoing insomnia, obstructive sleep apnea, or narcolepsy
• Underactive thyroid or overactive thyroid
• Autoimmune diseases such as lupus
• Chronic liver or kidney disease
• Congestive heart failure
• Diabetes
• Poor nutrition
• Certain medications may also cause drowsiness or fatigue, including antihistamines for allergies, blood pressure medicines, sleeping pills, steroids, and diuretics.

If you have any of these medical problems, please see your doctor. For the rest of you, here are some great lifestyle tips that can really help you to win the fight against fatigue:

• Get adequate, regular, and consistent amounts of sleep each night. It helps to go to bed at the same time each night and to get up at the same time each day, and to sleep in a cool, quiet, and comfortable room.
• Eat a healthy, well-balanced diet, and don’t skip breakfast. When you first wake up, your blood sugar is low, and eating a healthy breakfast can serve as an energy booster that will start your day off right.
• Drink plenty of water throughout the day. You may be surprised to learn that nothing can tire you out faster than dehydration, so keep a bottle of water by your side whenever possible.
• Exercise regularly. Moderate aerobic exercise, 3 or 4 times a week for 30 to 45 minutes, will help increase your energy level. The key is consistency, if you want to see consistent results.
• Learn how to relax. When you’re under excessive stress, your breathing becomes shallower, limiting the flow of vital oxygen to the cells of your body and brain. Whenever you’re feeling worn down by stress, try taking 5 to 10 deep breaths to help regain control. Breathing exercises, yoga, and meditation are techniques you can practice any time, and they’re great tools for managing stress and fatigue.
• Keep a reasonable and realistic schedule. Prioritize your daily to-do list and pace yourself as you work your way through your day. And make sure to schedule time for yourself. Even a half hour a day spent doing something that you enjoy will pay big dividends in reducing fatigue.
• Change your stressful circumstances, if possible. For example, take a vacation, and deal directly with problems in a relationship or with your boss.
• Take a multivitamin to help your body’s natural defenses against fatigue. Freelife offers advanced multi-nutrient formulas that can give you an edge in your daily fight against fatigue.
• Drink 4 ounces (120 ml) of GoChi every day!

GoChi® – Participants in groundbreaking clinical study report experiencing significantly reduced fatigue in just 14 days!

In a recent human clinical trial featured in the peer-reviewed Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine (JACM), participants drinking a daily serving of just 4 ounces (120 ml) of GoChi reported experiencing significantly increased energy levels and reduced fatigue in as little as 14 days! Researchers also noted that the GoChi drinkers reported reduced stress and improvements in sleep quality.

The publication of our study by the independent experts of a peer-reviewed publication such as JACM represents a first for a functional juice beverage in the Direct Selling industry, and it demonstrates FreeLife’s ongoing commitment to supporting its claims with solid scientific research.

Here’s to winning the fight against fatigue. Here’s to GoChi!

REFERENCES:

• “Medline Plus Medical Encyclopedia: Fatigue.” U.S. National Library of Medicine and National Institutes of Health. Bethesda, MD. Retrieved September 5, 2008.
• “How to beat fatigue.” Arthritis Today. June 8, 2007. Arthritis Foundation, Washington, DC. Retrieved September 5, 2008.
• Eustice, Carol and Richard. “10 Ways to Fight Fatigue.” About.com: Arthritis. June 23, 2008. Retrieved September 5, 2008.
• Puetz T, O’Connor P. “Low-intensity exercise reduces fatigue symptoms by 65 percent.” UGA Office of Public Affairs News Service. University of Georgia. Retrieved September 5, 2008.
• Amagase H, Nance DM. “A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled, Clinical Study of the General Effects of a Standardized Lycium barbarum (Goji) Juice, GoChi™.” J Altern Complement Med. 2008; 14(4), pp. 403-412. Abstract available on PubMed at: http://www.pubmed.gov (PMID: 18447631)

Click here for alternative of natural nutritional food that will increase your energy, stamina and athletic performance

Click here for Goji berry opportunities

Beating Cellulite: The new Diet

Harper Bazaar September 2005

On the Case

(I) am meant to be munching on Himalayan Goji Berries. Dr. Murad considers them to be the most nutritionally dense food on the planet. With almost 500 times more vitamin C than oranges, 18 types of amino acids, 21 trace elements and three B Vitamins, he say they’re excellent for cellulite elimination!

Himalayan Goji - A Miraculous Wonder Goji Berry?

By Irwan Lee

What is the fuss about Goji? Why do people all over the world suddenly talks about Goji? Why do Hollywood celebrities like Ben Kingsley, Anthony Michael Hall, Madonna, Paula Abdul, Mischa Barton and Elizabeth Hurley and athletes like Mike De-Laval (Weight Lifter Champion), Jon Mark Owings (Professional Baseball Players), David Rodriguez (Boxing Champ) and Heidi Koster (Ms. Fitness Australia) to name a few, raved on Goji Benefits?

In 2005, the Los Angeles Times raved about “Tibetan and Chinese legends tell of people who live century-long lives while retaining the strength and beauty of youth - thanks to Lycium (goji).”

Woman’s weekly - “Chinese miracle berries that keep woman young!”

The Today Show - “Goji … Packed with antioxidants.”

In 2006 Time magazine - “This years’ breakout (super fruit) was the Himalayan goji berry, said to be a source of energy and longevity.”

New Woman Magazine - “The latest super fruit to take Hollywood by storm is the Himalayan Goji berry.”

BBC News Magazine - “Celebrities have been singing the praises of Goji.”

In 2007 the news breaking was even better as the highest-rated talk show in television history - The Oprah Winfrey Show - make an unsolicited, unpaid endorsement by a leading Medical Doctor - Dr. Mehmet Oz, (author of the bestselling “YOU: The Owners Manual”, and Vice Chairman of Surgery at Columbia University) - which carries considerable weight. Nobody is going to risk his/her credibility on National TV by endorsing something he/she doesn’t believe in. He recommended Goji to Chicago Bulls leading scorer Ben Gordon to maintain high energy levels and not to crash after working out. Dr. Oz said: “Goji - a bright colored fruits - grow in the Himalayas are the most potent antioxidant fruit that we ever know.”

So what is Goji berry? Are they a miracle “super fruit,” or just another product of hype machine? Let’s study it more carefully.

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