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Reduce Stress With Positive Thinking

Positive thinking helps with stress management and can even improve your health. Practice overcoming negative self-talk with examples provided.

Is your glass half-empty or half-full? How you answer this age-old question about positive thinking may reflect your outlook on life, your attitude toward yourself, and whether you're optimistic or pessimistic — and it may even affect your health.

Indeed, some studies show that personality traits like optimism and pessimism can affect many areas of your health and well-being. The positive thinking that typically comes with optimism is a key part of effective stress management. And effective stress management is associated with many health benefits. If you tend to be pessimistic, don't despair — you can learn positive thinking skills.

Understanding positive thinking and self-talk

Positive thinking doesn't mean that you keep your head in the sand and ignore life's less pleasant situations. Positive thinking just means that you approach unpleasantness in a more positive and productive way. You think the best is going to happen, not the worst.

Positive thinking often starts with self-talk. Self-talk is the endless stream of unspoken thoughts that run through your head. These automatic thoughts can be positive or negative. Some of your self-talk comes from logic and reason. Other self-talk may arise from misconceptions that you create because of lack of information.

If the thoughts that run through your head are mostly negative, your outlook on life is more likely pessimistic. If your thoughts are mostly positive, you're likely an optimist — someone who practices positive thinking.

The health benefits of positive thinking

Researchers continue to explore the effects of positive thinking and optimism on health. Health benefits that positive thinking may provide include:

• Increased life span
• Lower rates of depression
• Lower levels of distress
• Greater resistance to the common cold
• Better psychological and physical well-being
• Reduced risk of death from cardiovascular disease
• Better coping skills during hardships and times of stress

It's unclear why people who engage in positive thinking experience these health benefits. One theory is that having a positive outlook enables you to cope better with stressful situations, which reduces the harmful health effects of stress on your body. It's also thought that positive and optimistic people tend to live healthier lifestyles — they get more physical activity, follow a healthier diet, and don't smoke or drink alcohol in excess.

Source:mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/stress-management/in-depth/positive-thinking/art-20043950

5 Reasons Porridge Makes The Healthiest Breakfast Option

Whether you enjoy it with almonds, blueberries or a sprinkle of cinnamon - porridge is one of the healthiest breakfast options.

Other than being low in fat, the oatmeal dish is a great source of minerals, fibre and slow-releasing carbohydrates.

Researchers from Harvard University previously found wholegrains, such as oats, were the key to living longer. 

Here Cassandra Barns, a London-based nutritionist, reveals the 5 reasons why porridge makes the best breakfast.

NO ADDED SUGAR

'Oats are a good source of slow-releasing energy and, unlike most other breakfast cereals, don’t contain any added sugar,' says Ms Barns.

'This means they can help to keep your energy stable until lunchtime, rather than causing a crash by mid-morning!' 

NATURAL SOURCE OF VITAMINS AND MINERALS

'Being whole grains, oats are a natural source of vitamins and minerals, including vitamin B1, magnesium, iron, manganese and zinc, which have many vital roles in the body including supporting energy and immunity,' she adds.

Most breakfast cereals are low in these natural nutrients and have to be fortified with synthetic vitamins, which may not be as easily used by our body. 

Magnesium is often lacking in the average diet, and so many of us may not get enough. 

'It’s one of the nutrients that’s essential for our cells to make energy,' Ms Barns says. 

She recommends Nairn’s Scottish Porridge Oats as a particularly good source of magnesium. 

SLOW RELEASING ENERGY

Porridge is a great breakfast for fitness fanatics and gym-goers either before or after training, the nutritionist claims.

'The slow-releasing carbohydrates in oats are fantastic for powering a workout or for restoring muscles after training, and magnesium is vital for muscle function too,' Ms Barns adds.

Oats provide slow-releasing carbohydrates to help replenish muscle glycogen - the energy stored in muscles. 

DRESS UP TO INCREASE PROTEIN AND HEALTHY FATS

'Porridge can easily be "dressed up" to increase its deliciousness and nutrient content,' she says. 

Add fresh berries for the tang and sweetness, vitamin C and antioxidants. 

Stir in chopped nuts or seeds to increase the protein content and healthy fats. 

Or sprinkle over a teaspoon of cinnamon, which has warming qualities for the winter, and may help with balancing blood sugar, Ms Barns advises.

GREAT SOURCE OF FIBRE

'The fibre in porridge oats may help to lower cholesterol naturally,' she says.

Oats are a much better way to lower your cholesterol than popular cholesterol-lowering spreads, which are made with hydrogenated, unnatural fats.

They contain a soluble fibre called beta-glucan, which helps stop cholesterol being absorbed into the bloodstream through the intestinal walls. 

Dietary fibre has also been known to help people maintain a healthy weight, which in turn reduces the chances of developing type 2 diabetes.

Porridge is known to have around 4g of fibre per bowl, where as cornflakes has less than 0.3g.

Source: dailymail.co.uk/health/article-3820044/Revealed-5-reasons-makes-porridge-healthiest-breakfast-option.html#ixzz4NQBuc3Zt