10 Strange But True Life-Changing Health Hacks

10 Strange But True Life-Changing Health Hacks
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(AscendHealthy.com) – From what to eat to how many hours to sleep, we seem to hear the same advice on how to stay healthy over… and over… and over…

Ready for something different? Learn how to change your life and enhance your well-being with our 10 strange but true health hacks below.


Discover 10 Strange But True Life-Changing Health Hacks.

Strange But True Life-Changing Health Hacks

Every year, we seem to hear about a new way to enhance our health. From ketogenic diets to butter coffee drinks, we might even try out these trends for a while. But few, if any, of these fads can make a difference that will endure for a lifetime.

Looking for health and wellness recommendations that really work long-term? Here are 10 strange but true hacks that have the power to change our lives.

  1. Take a coffee nap: Forget that advice to avoid coffee and other forms of caffeine before trying to sleep… at least when it comes to naps. Drinking coffee before a short rest period can boost participants’ post-sleep energy levels. Researchers compared study participants who took 200 mg of caffeine before a nap lasting 20 minutes with participants who followed their naps with bright light exposure or washing their faces. Those who consumed the caffeine boosted their energy levels more.
  2. Don’t brush after meals: We’re often instructed to brush our teeth promptly after meals. But if we have eaten or sipped acidic items like tomatoes, oranges or lemonade, the acid softens our tooth enamel. That turns tooth-brushing into an act that could damage our tooth enamel. Waiting between half an hour to an hour after consuming these foods reduces that risk.
  3. Eat more for weight loss: Love those 100-calorie packs of tiny cookies? That type of all-carb snack boosts our blood sugar levels, causing us to crave more. By choosing a higher-calorie, higher protein snack like a sliced banana spread with peanut butter, we stay full longer. That satisfying feeling ultimately may cause us to consume fewer calories overall, resulting in weight loss.
  4. Ease claustrophobia with a cucumber or green apple: Do you fear being in small spaces like elevators? Bring along a green apple or cucumber to smell, which research has found to ease the anxiety of claustrophobia.
  5. Eat dessert: When we dine in a restaurant, we may long to finish our meal with a guilty pleasure like a slice of cake. Trying to be healthy, we skip the dessert. We feel deprived when we get home, so we have a fat-free, gluten-free cookie from our stash. Smart decision, right? Wrong, say experts. Those fat-free or gluten-free treats often contain more sugar than the real deal. Instead, indulge in a single serving of a desired dessert.
  6. Sleep less for health: We’ve heard the advice to get at least eight hours of sleep many times. But a study showed sleeping over eight hours daily increased the risk of metabolic syndrome more than getting under eight hours nightly. Metabolic syndrome is associated with serious health conditions like diabetes and heart disease.
  7. Turn up the music: How often were we told as teens to turn off our music and focus on studying? Ahem. It seems mom was wrong. Researchers have found that listening to music may improve our brain’s ability to process information. Paying attention to our favorite tunes might even ease pain, stress, and depression.
  8. Flush annoying people: Experiencing unwanted stress due to certain annoying people? Jot down their names on strips of flushable paper. Then toss them in the toilet bowl and flush to (literally) let go of those feelings.
  9. Ignore electric hand dryers in public bathrooms: One of the facts of life: Everyone poops (and pees) — and that means occasionally using a public restroom. We might assume that electric hand dryers are the best option to avoid germs after washing our hands. But a study showed paper towels are the top choice for removing bacteria from our hands.
  10. Exercise when tired: It might seem counter-intuitive. But when we’re tired after a long day at work, exercising can boost our energy levels. Studies repeatedly show that when non-exercisers get into fitness, their levels of fatigue decrease.

We hope you’ve enjoyed our strange (but true!) life-changing health hacks. Whether flushing annoying people down the toilet or enjoying that slice of cake for dessert, these tips have something in common. They all offer ways to enhance our well-being simply and effectively.

~Here’s to Your Healthy Ascension

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