4 ways to influence your health

November 21, 2024 – You’re probably spending more time at home now than you were five years ago.

Certainly, many Americans are now working from home (or hybrid). However, data shows that other home-based activities are also on the rise. new survey data from the US Census program. For the average American, this adds 66 minutes more time at home per day compared to 2019.

The trend is expanding back until the early 2000s. And yes, COVID has shaken things up a bit.

Loneliness is now an epidemic. Time spent with technology has not yet found its limit. And people are moving their bodies less than ever.

This sounds bad. However, spending more time at home can also create healthy opportunities.

The study found that U.S. adults now sleep about 16 minutes more, spend an extra six minutes on hobbies or recreation, and eat at home six more minutes per day.

“These trends really give us all an opportunity to pause and look at our lives,” said Kara Parker, MD, a family medicine physician who practices primary care at Hennepin Healthcare in Minneapolis. “What is our balance at home and away from home? Who do we spend time with and where? Is “where” good for us and how can we make it healthier? Is “who” good for us and how can we make it healthier?”

These questions are worth asking several times a year, and Parker suggests doing a seasonal assessment. Start yours now.

Food

Restaurants have long since reopened, but Americans are still eating at home. This is good because home cooking encourages you to eat healthier and reduce your calorie intake.

But that’s not so good if you’re eating off-screen during video conferences or while watching nine seasons of the series. Suits.

It can help to prioritize meals as “mini-recharging sessions” during the workday.

“Stick to one screen-free meal a day. Eating while looking at screens can lead to overeating because it distracts us from hunger and fullness cues,” said Fernanda Brusamolin, EdD. RSAssociate Professor of the Department of Nutrition and exercise at Bastyr University, which has campuses in California and Washington.

She suggests taking time to focus on the colors and textures of your food while you eat, which can increase satisfaction and pleasure while reducing the urge to overeat.

And it turns out that mindful eating helps with digestion. Set a timer for 20 minutes and eat more slowly, suggests Brusamolin, which can lead to longer chewing times and ultimately more time for salivary enzymes to break down food so nutrients can be better absorbed.

And if your homemade meals come courtesy of DoorDash, take those six minutes to chop up some fresh food. vegetables as a side dish or to make homemade salad dressing,” Brusamolin said.

“With every choice you make, ask yourself: Are you looking at health or disease?” she advises.

Relaxing

People report spending more time on hobbies and recreation, and Parker believes this is directly related to the pandemic.

“I see people choosing behaviors that they want to continue and have enjoyed since then,” she said. This is good: relaxation activates your parasympathetic nervous system – part of your nervous system that reduces your heart rate and helps you recover from stress.

But there’s an important caveat: scrolling isn’t relaxing.

“Some statistics suggest that the best way to relax in America is to unplug from watching TV or scrolling,” Parker said. “People consider it a form of relaxation.”

Relaxation is actually “a deep, mindful moment where you really get wide heart rate variability, highlight your parasympathetic response, and come out of it refreshed and in a better state,” Parker said.

“Not everyone understands what truly relaxation is anymore,” she said.

True relaxation means activating an important connection between the brain and body called vagus nervewhich runs from the brain stem to the intestines. It is a part of the nervous system that is known to be affected by meditation and massage. This is not only related to digestion, but also inflammation. Achieving true relaxation requires regulating your heart rate (HR), so deep breathing rather than scrolling is often a good starting point.

The data can help assess whether you’re using your body’s biological ability to relax, so check your smartwatch, ring or fitness tracker.

“For most people, walking in nature increases heart rate variability (HRV), which is a sign of autonomic balance. For others, deep, extended exhalation over several cycles will reduce tension, increase HRV and induce relaxation,” Parker advised. “For most, scrolling through events, watching TV and using social networks are activated. adrenalin, cortisolincreases heart rate and decreases HRV.”

Sleeping

The survey finding that people are spending an extra 16 minutes sleeping also raises some questions that both Brusamolin and Parker see as another opportunity for each of us to evaluate our own sleep habits.

“Sleeping more—I like it,” Parker said. “Here’s my question for every single person: Do you stay in bed more and sleep more?”

She thinks it’s possible that people who took the survey reported more time spent in bed, but did not report an increase in restorative sleep.

“I’m not hearing a trend of people feeling better rested,” Parker said, noting that the opposite is actually true.

Staying in bed for extended periods of time to feel more restored became a TikTok trend last summer and was dubbed “bed rot.” The American Academy of Sleep Medicine published warning against this, advising people to instead keep a regular schedule for getting in and out of bed.

Again, Parker recommends using devices to collect sleep quality data, perhaps even doing some mini-experiments at home to see if improving your sleep hygiene helps.

“This may include dimming lights in the evening, using blue light blockers, and limiting consumption of screen-activated content to an hour before desired bedtime,” she said. “This may include more exercise during the day, exposure to sun and fresh air, and a bedtime routine as if you were a child. Then track how you sleep, wake up, and feel.”

“Human physiology It’s not easy to go from high adrenaline, high cortisol and bright lights to suddenly falling asleep,” she added. “It’s a circadian process that thrives under the influence of slump, darkness and other supporting activities.”

Interaction

You’ve heard the public service announcements. Americans are more isolated than ever, and that can be bad for your health.

But there’s a nuance here that gets overlooked: “Increasing time spent at home does not simply result in a loss of all interpersonal contacts, but rather represents a shift from time spent with friends to time spent with family,” says researcher. Patrick Sharkey, Ph.D., is a professor of sociology and public affairs who also analyzed U.S. Census data and published his findings last summer in the journal. Sociological science.

He found that more time spent at home was not always directly associated with increased happiness or improved stress management. Instead, the positive benefits appear to be related to whether time spent at home involves social interaction. Parker advises people to remember to balance family time with friendship time.

Friendship is important because it is two-way and mutually beneficial. With family, that’s not always the case, Parker said. “Therefore, friendship is essential for health.”

“The trend of people talking about spending less time with friends actually bothers and bothers me,” Parker said.

In the wellness groups Parker leads as part of her primary care practice, she says they address loneliness directly by asking this question: “Is there someone in your life if you run out of gas 30 miles away?” or you’ll burst the tire, do it? do you have someone to call? And it’s amazing how many people we gather who have no one to turn to for this help.”

Rebalance your time—perhaps shifting from the time you normally spend with family to time spent with friends—and the benefits are likely to create a new healthy cycle.

“Loneliness breeds behaviors that perpetuate loneliness. He may be vulnerable and will need courage to prioritize time with friends. The good news is that true friendship is mutually beneficial,” Parker said. “Dedicating time to friends is one of those decisions that contributes to the long game of living a meaningful and purposeful life.”